Four men were arrested at the weekend when they were caught red-handed burning suspected stolen municipal electrical cables.
Nelson Mandela Bay municipality security services, working with a security contractor hired by Telkom, effected the arrests on Saturday morning.
The four were caught in Sidwell, Commercial Road, when the officers noticed smoke in the open area next to the Sasol garage and went to investigate.
“Our security officers were called to the scene where they found four men burning suspected stolen municipal electrical cables.
“The men were arrested and remain in custody at the Algoa Park police station. We applaud the collaborative efforts by all stakeholders to make sure we curb the ongoing crisis of cable theft in our city,” said Bay safety and security boss Lawrence Troon.
He said the city was losing thousands of rand due to cable theft across all directorates.
“We remain committed as a city to fight this scourge that is crippling service delivery.
“People will see traffic lights not working and will lambaste the municipality but we are dealing with serious criminals who damage our infrastructure regularly.
“We urge all residents and different sectors to stand up against these kinds of acts as they affect all of us,” Troon said.
The suspects will appear in court soon.
Residents are urged to report suspected cable theft to the municipality’s security services on 041-508-5576.
HeraldLIVE