Johannesburg - Four men who allegedly tried to steal copper cables were arrested in Tembisa on Thursday, said Ekurhuleni metro police.
Inspector Kobeli Mokheseng said the men broke into the municipality's electricity storage yard shortly after midnight.
“Security guards witnessed three perpetrators cutting a padlock of the main gate, before a white Nissan light delivery vehicle drove in,” said Mokheseng. The guards alerted police and the anti-cable theft unit.
“The suspects were armed with hacksaws, hammers and self-made knives [and] were busy breaking a wood roll containing a 115m-long copper cable when they were cornered and apprehended,” said Mokheseng.
The cable they were cutting into was worth around R240 000. The four were charged with malicious damage to property and attempted theft. They were expected to appear in the Tembisa Magistrate's Court soon.
Sapa