A scrap-metal dealer and two workers at the City of Cape Town have been arrested for theft of copper cables, the municipality said on Friday.
Pieter van Dalen, chairperson of the City’s cable-theft task team, said the workers were arrested this week after confessing to stealing the cables and selling them to a scrap-metal dealer.
The dealer was arrested when cables and drain covers were found at his premises on Tuesday.
The arrest follows a summit on theft of copper cables this week, where Cape Town mayor Helen Zille called on the scrap-metal industry to rout out unscrupulous dealers trading in stolen metals.
Van Dalen said task team investigators recovered 70m of copper cable weighing 625kg as well as water meters and other council equipment.
”The black-market value of the stolen council property is estimated at R73 000,” he said.
The copper cable was still covered in PVC that prominently displayed the name of the City of Cape Town, and the water meters were clearly identified as council property.
”The scrap-yard owner was unable to explain how he came to be in possession of the goods, nor was he able to produce documentation of their purchase,” Van Dalen said.
The equipment was traced back to the council’s water-services depot in Bellville where two council workers confessed to the theft and were arrested. ”Investigations are ongoing and further arrests are expected,” he said.
Over the past year the municipality has lost more than R22-million due to theft of water meters and copper cables. — Sapa