Free State Police Hit Zama Zamas Hard, Arrest 9 and Recover Stolen and Illicit Goods
- Free State police executed Operation Vala Umgodi in an effort to push back against illegal mining
- Police, working with other law enforcement, aimed to thwart illicit activities threatening communities
- Nine suspects, including four foreigners, two of whom were undocumented in the past week, were arrested
- Lt-Col Thabo Covane, in a statement sent to Briefly News, said the illegal activities threatened communities
Source: Original
BLOEMFONTEIN — The police's efforts to rid the province of Zama Zamas (illegal miners) yielded some results as Operation Vala Umgodi entered another phase.
The integrated multidisciplinary strategy has identified illegal mining hotspots throughout South Africa, including in the Free State.
Free State Police Hit Zama Zamas Hard
Bloemfontein police spokesperson Lt-Col Thabo Covane, in a statement sent to Briefly News, said the approach aimed to resolve the illegal mining challenge facing the country's mining industry brought on by organised crime groups.
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He said the illegal activities threatened communities near the mining areas and posed risks and harmful hazards to those carrying out the illicit acts.
"Operation Vala Umgosi is [a joint effort between] the South African Police Service (SAPS), South African National Defense Force (SANDF), Home Affairs, and other [law enforcement] stakeholders," he explained.
Intelligence-driven operations were executed at:
- Hijacked properties;
- Deserted open shafts;
- Informal settlements and hostels;
- National and/ provincial roads; and
- Near neighbouring countries' borders.
Covane said the police arrested nine suspects for various crimes in different parts of the province in the past week.
It included six suspects, two of whom were undocumented, for trespassing on a mining area and possession of suspected gold-bearing material.
"One suspect was arrested for contravening the Prevention and Combating of Corrupt Activities Act, contravening the Mine Health and Safety Act and conspiracy to commit a crime," Covane said.
"An operational team conducted roadblocks along the provincial border, during which a silver Isuzu single cab was stopped and searched.
"Two men, aged 42 and 43, were arrested for possession of suspected stolen livestock; 52 live sheep with one dead, valued at an estimated R132,000, and five goats, valued at R8,000."
All suspects will appear in court soon.
Lesotho nationals' stalls abandoned during Interpol operation
In related news, Briefly News reported that a video surfaced online of a Bloemfontein informal trade market deserted and goods left behind by street vendors who allegedly fled from police descending on the area.
The clip captured the law enforcement activity and showed several abandoned fruit and vegetable stalls on either side of the street.
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Source: Briefly News
