A Cape Town man has been arrested, after being found in possession of copper cables, belonging to the City of Cape Town, during an operation conducted by law enforcement officials.
On Monday, members of the Law Enforcement Metal Theft Unit conducted an inspection of random vehicles conveying scrap to a scrap metal dealer, in Wetton.
Mayoral committee member for safety and security Alderman JP Smith said officers stopped the vehicle and questioned the driver, who claimed he worked for the scrap dealer and was on his way to visit a friend and colleague.
He said officers noticed the driver’s hesitancy when asked to open his boot and, while initially finding nothing, a look into the spare wheel compartment under the mat revealed copper cables inside a white nylon bag, which belonged to the City of Cape Town.
Smith said the driver was subsequently arrested for the possession of the cables and was arrested for being in possession of the stolen property and damaging essential infrastructure.
The value of the 30kg of copper cables excludes the value of replacement and the damage to infrastructure. A second charge of damaging infrastructure was registered and the suspect, from Delft, was transported to Lansdowne SAPS, where he is currently being detained,” he said.
Smith said, during the past week, the City of Cape Town’s enforcement agencies managed to arrest 180 suspects, and issued 64 588 fines. Law Enforcement arrested 82 suspects and issued 2 875 fines.
Traffic officers managed to arrest 50 suspects, impounded 88 vehicles, confiscated 130 cell phones, and issued 60 046 fines.
The Transport Enforcement Unit arrested two suspects, impounded 61 vehicles, and issued 1 965 fines over the past week.
Officers attached to the Metro Police arrested 48 suspects, of which 25 were arrested on charges of dealing and being in possession of drugs, and issued 1 667 fines.
“The weekly arrests made by our enforcement officers shows that daily patrols in the communities and visiting crime hotspots pays off.
“The presence of officers patrolling the streets and communities is also a crime deterrent. Random roadblocks and ad hoc stop and search operations, together with the alertness and swift reaction of our officers, are effective in crime prevention initiatives,” Smith said.
Communities should allow officers to do their work and protect law abiding citizens from criminal elements, he said.
Smith added that officers will intensify patrols, where and when necessary, based on crime pattern analysis and information gathered.
Source: IOL
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