2nd Senior Eskom Employee Arrested for R3m Cable Theft, Security Supervisor Joins 7 Others in Court
- A second senior Eskom employee at the Tutuka power station appeared in court for alleged involvement in a R3 million copper cable theft
- A total of eight suspects, including two Mozambican nationals, have been implicated, following an incident at Kinross Weighbridge
- An initial three suspects were arrested after crashing a Toyota Hilux double cab transporting copper cables on 30 September 2024
- The Hawks Warrant Officer Thandi Tshabalala identified Tutuka security supervisor Modupi Mofokeng as the eighth suspect arrested
Source: Twitter
Tshepiso Mametela is a seasoned journalist and the Head of Current Affairs at Briefly News. He reported live from President Cyril Ramaphosa's inauguration and has written articles on politics, crime, courts, accidents, and topics including sports at The Herald and Opera News SA over several years.
STANDERTON — The Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (Hawks) has arrested a second Eskom employee implicated in the theft of copper cable worth an estimated R3 million.
The Hawks' Secunda-based Serious Organised Crime Investigation unit nabbed a security supervisor at the Tutuka power station, his arrest on Wednesday, 5 March 2025, adding to seven others executed earlier.
2nd Eskom senior in the dock
Mpumalanga Hawks spokesperson Warrant Officer Thandi Tshabalala, in response to a Briefly News inquiry on 12 March, identified the worker as Modupi Mofokeng.
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She said Mofokeng, 40, who was arrested on 5 March, appeared in the Standerton Magistrate's Court the next day.
The first Eskom worker, a principal inspector at Eskom Tutuka, Refilwe Motloung, 36, was apprehended on Thursday, 3 October 2024, before appearing in the Evander Magistrate's Court the next day.
Motloung's brother, Motsumi, and brother-in-law, Jack Twala, 45, were the sixth and seventh arrests in the same month.
Source: UGC
Their arrests follow an incident on 30 September when an on-duty Provincial Traffic Officer at the Kinross Weighbridge stopped a Toyota Hilux double cab transporting copper cables.
"The officer ordered the vehicle onto the weighbridge station, but the driver drove away, prompting a chase," said Tshabalala.
"The driver lost control in the process, causing the fleeing car to overturn. The Hawks responded and arrested three people who were transporting the copper cables after they failed to give a satisfactory explanation."
Their alibi led to the arrest of a fourth suspect the same day.
Thabo Dlamini, 30, Dumisani Njinga, 53, both South Africans, and Solomon Mlambo, 24, and Silas Sithole, 47, both Mozambicans, appeared in the Evander Magistrate’s Court on 2 October and the case was postponed to 7 October.
After the Kinross arrests in September, a Hawks' Serious Organised Crime-led multidisciplinary operation, comprising Provincial Traffic Officers, Secunda K9, Local Criminal Record Centre, Eskom Security and Fidelity Security followed up information of a farm where an Eskom truck dropped off a consignment.
The Hawks' Captain Dineo Sekgotodi said in a SAPS statement that stripped and burnt copper cables were found, with more recovered during a search.
"The team determined that the cables were stolen from the Tutuka power station," said Sekgotodi.
After the eighth and final suspect's appearance, the case was postponed until 17 March, when all the accused are expected in the Standerton Magistrate's Court.
Corrupting crisis stripping infrastructure integrity
Copper cable theft has been a pervasive problem, with significant economic and social consequences for South Africa.
Its rife prevalence has impacted essential infrastructure, such as telecommunications while contributing to load shedding and train delays.
Reports suggest that the existential problem has escalated significantly in recent years, partly prompted in part by the high price of copper, making it a lucrative target for criminal syndicates.
Organised groups often sell the stolen material on the black market, locally and internationally. Notably, there have been instances where Eskom employees have been implicated in copper cable theft.
Syndicates leverage insiders' infrastructure knowledge, access to restricted areas, and assistance with logistics to make good on the illicit business.
However, Eskom Security and other entities were attempting to push back against substantial economic damage, brought on by the ravaging crime, that ran into billions annually. This included the cost of replacing stolen cables, lost productivity, and negative investor confidence.
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Source: Briefly News
