CRIME NEWS -  The City of Cape Town has hailed the recent sentencing of a convicted cable thief to 15 years behind bars, as a step in the right direction.

The 55-year-old man was arrested by the city’s Metal Theft Unit (MTU) in Kraaifontein in 2023. 

The cable thief was found in possession of eight bags of stolen Transnet overhead copper cable weighing over 400 kg, with a street value of R558 000.

In a statement issued on Saturday 28 June, the city described the 15-year sentence as one of the most significant outcomes resulting from an arrest by its enforcement units.

“Although, to be fair, we do not always know how the story ends, as there is no mechanism that ensures feedback on investigations and convictions. 

"Even in this instance, we came to hear about the matter more than two months after it concluded, but it is welcome news nonetheless, and we commend everyone who had a hand in the successful conclusion of the case, starting with our law enforcement officer who made the arrest,” the city said.

The City Of Cape Town warned that cable theft remains a significant threat to essential services and infrastructure. In response, it has scaled up the MTU in recent years, deploying more officers and technology such as drones, CCTV, and infrared cameras.

Cable theft is a massive problem in South Africa costing the country billions of rand each year. In the Garden Route the various municipalities regularly issue awards for information leading to the conviction of infrastructure vandals and thieves.    

In the past 11 months alone, Cape Town's MTU has made 126 arrests, recovered over a km of stolen cable and nearly two tons of stolen metal. Officers have also completed 4 706 patrols in hotspot areas, conducted 1 573 scrapyard compliance inspections, responded to 501 public complaints, and issued 3 634 by-law fines.

“The illicit scrap metal trade is one of the biggest challenges. We need greater intervention at national level to take the shine out of the trade, and we need consistently strong signals from the criminal justice system that this type of criminal activity won’t be tolerated,” the city said.

‘We bring you the latest Garden Route, Hessequa, Karoo news’