Thieves broke into a South African air base and stole at least R1,3-million earmarked for presidential flights abroad, a newspaper reported on Thursday.
The thieves used crowbars to open two security doors and cut open safes on Tuesday night at Waterkloof air base outside Pretoria, the South African Air Force told Beeld.
The funds were designated for landing rights and fuel for planes carrying President Thabo Mbeki and other officials on overseas trips.
Mbeki has been widely criticised in the past year for failing to tackle a crime epidemic in South Africa, which has one of the world’s highest rates of murder and rape.
The president pledged earlier this year to hire more police officers and improve their training to make streets safer, an effort seen as critical to the success of the 2010 Soccer World Cup in South Africa. – Reuters