Johannesburg - A violent copper heist over the weekend has spooked City Power, which is concerned about the increased brazenness of robberies that result in losses running into millions of rand for Joburg.
This follows Saturday night's armed robbery at the utility's Mulbarton substation where, according to mayor Herman Mashaba, six men “stormed the substation at around midnight, held up the security officers on duty and a staff member, tied them up with cable before stealing equipment from the site”.
Mashaba said on Sunday that a 500m drum of cable, five 75m copper cables, three cellphones belonging to two security guards and an electrician, as well as the electrician's R3500 toolbox, were stolen by robbers during the daring break-in.
City Power spokesperson Isaac Mangena said the entity was beginning to fear the bold nature of thefts on its assets as robbers were beginning to attack power stations directly.
“I think they (criminals) are becoming more brazen. In the past, our concern has always been (the theft) of cables which have already been supplying electricity to the people; cables which are already underground or overhead.
“But now, if they go directly to the substation, where they know that we keep these materials in storage, that really tells you that these people are no longer young criminals who are just going after the copper cables which are already out there,” Mangena said.
In November, R80million worth of stolen City Power infrastructure was found on 10 properties around Gauteng in a sting operation involving various law enforcement agencies.
Earlier this year, The Sunday Independent reported that, in the six months leading up to May, Joburg had suffered R50m through cable theft.
In its 2016/2017 annual report City Power said it had incurred R9.5m in losses through 169 cable theft incidents.
Mangena said the utility would begin to beef up security around its infrastructure. He said Mulbarton was currently a construction site undergoing upgrades, meaning the site was controlled by the contractor.
“What we are going to do is to start being involved with the contractors and be able to advise, guide and help them in terms of security, ensuring that the property that belongs to City Power is secured.
“But also, in conjunction with the police, we will explore the possibility of plainclothed officials where we have stored infrastructure so that we are able to apprehend these criminals before they pounce,” he said.
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