State-owned entity Transnet has welcomed the sentencing by the Belfast Magistrates Court earlier this week of three criminals who stole contact wire (copper cables) belonging to Transnet in October 2021.
This confirms that Transnet’s interventions, in collaboration with law enforcement agencies and security service providers, are yielding results, the entity said on November 17.
The three, who were arrested near Wonderfontein railway line, in Mpumalanga, where 67 m of Transnet overhead cables were cut and stolen, were found guilty and each sentenced to 15 years’ imprisonment for damaging and tampering with essential infrastructure.
The individuals were found to not only have contravened the Criminal Matters Amendment Act but to have also violated immigration laws. The Criminal Matters Amendment Act provides for harsher and lengthier sentences for those found to have tampered with essential infrastructure.
Transnet on Thursday said the convictions should also “serve as a warning against tampering with essential infrastructure and sabotaging Transnet’s operations and the economy of the country”.