Durban — The eThekwini municipality has referred to the arrest of six men who were found with car parts stolen from municipal vehicles.
The municipality said that it was a city victory.
It said that eThekwini municipality metro police has arrested six men who were found in possession of car parts stolen from municipal vehicles.
The municipality said that the arrest was made after a tip-off led a team to a bush in Tafelkop where the men were found stripping and loading municipal vehicles parts to transport them.
Metro police spokesperson Colonel Boysie Zungu said the suspects were arrested and handed over to the nearest police station.
The arrest follows another recent success where our metro police’s task team recovered an NDM VW in uMlazi. The successes come in the face of an increase in the hijackings of municipal vehicles.
The municipality said that it is experiencing a sharp rise in hijacking incidents involving municipal and contractor vehicles.
In the current financial year, it has lost no less than 95 vehicles, with the number rising daily, which has had a negative effect on service delivery, and with employees often left physically and psychologically scarred.
EThekwini mayor Mxolisi Kaunda applauded the work being done by law enforcement in the fight against this scourge.
“We applaud the metro police for this arrest given the alarming spike in municipal vehicle hijackings which delays service delivery in communities and places the lives of employees at risk,” Kaunda said.
He also called upon communities to work closely with the City and law enforcement agencies to bring the perpetrators to book. He also called on communities to report any suspicious activity to the nearest police station or to call 0800 235 338.
He added that known hotspots are Mayville, Folweni, uMlazi, KwaMashu, Inanda, Zwelibomvu, Hammarsdale and KwaNdengezi.
Meanwhile, when Kaunda delivered his State of the City Address in April, he said that in the current financial year alone, no fewer than 95 vehicles had been hijacked from municipal staff and contractors.
City fleet unit head Malcolm Joshua said that light commercial vehicles were targeted the most.
However, last month, sister publication The Mercury reported that the latest figures detailing the attacks on municipal employees show that the metro is being held under siege by criminals, with more than 110 vehicles hijacked and staff members being wounded or traumatised this year.
Joshua said that the waste and sanitation unit and electricity unit were the most affected by attacks because they were out in the field dealing with repairs.
“The number for the year so far is just over 110 vehicles that have been hijacked. They are all light commercial vehicles, meaning your bakkies. That has been the target,” Joshua said.
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