Durban — Three men were arrested after they were found in possession of eThekwini street lights worth R30 000 and electricity cables.
Durban Metro Police Service spokesperson Senior Superintendent Boysie Zungu said that a joint infrastructure team - Durban Metro Police Service, South African Police Service, Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (Prasa), Transnet and eThekwini Municipality electricity investigating team - conducted an operation in KwaMashu and Newlands East.
“Through information received, a scrapyard was located where a stolen eThekwini Metro street light was found,” Zungu said.
He said that information gathered at the scrapyard led to another recovery at a related premises.
“A large amount of eThekwini metro cables and another new street light and kit were recovered,” Zungu said.
He said that three men aged between 24 and 54 were arrested for being in the possession of and receiving of property suspected to be stolen, possession of burnt copper cables and tampering with essential infrastructure.
Zungu said that the exhibits recovered were 50 metres of eThekwini electricity cables and two street lights valued at R30 000.
He also said that the suspects were processed at Newlands East police station.
Police spokesperson Lieutenant-Colonel Nqobile Gwala added that the men aged 24, 41 and 53 were arrested for possession of suspected stolen property as well as tempering the essential infrastructure.
They were due to appear in the Durban Magistrate’s Court today , Wednesday, January 25, 2023.
Last October, the Daily News reported that the eThekwini Municipality might have spent more than R500 million on a street light contract before terminating it because of fictitious invoices.
Non-functioning street lights have been a thorn in the side of ratepayers, who have lambasted their ward councillors for not taking action to have streets and highways lit up at night.
Earlier in 2022, the publication also reported that more than 40 000 street light poles were vandalised or stolen in the eThekwini Municipality between July 2021 and February 2022.
Daily News