The Johannesburg Metropolitan Police Department (JMPD) Undercover officers arrested two Cameroonian males on Saturday 5 March 2022 in possession of stolen copper in Bramely, north of Johannesburg.
JMPD Spokesperson Xolani Fihla said working on information received, officers proceeded to corner 11th Road and 3rd Avenue in Bramley, where they observed the suspected property. “An unknown male opened the gate of the premises, officers approached him, identified themselves as police and proceeded to search inside the premises.”
Fihla said whilst searching, they found another male inside the premises and discovered huge quantities of copper cut up into pieces. “When questioned, the two males failed to give a valid explanation on how they acquired the copper and were immediately arrested. Upon arrest, the suspects attempted to bribe officers with R10 000 cash”.
He added that City Power and Prasa officials were called to identify the copper. It was discovered that the copper belongs to Transnet and Prasa, and it cost an estimated value of R3 million worth of damage to infrastructure.
The suspects were detained at Bramley SAPS and charged with damage to infrastructure, possession of stolen copper and bribery. They will appear at court on Monday 07 March 2022.
