Three cable skelms, who are accused of damaging electrical boxes in Lotus River and Grassy Park, are finally agter tralies.
The trio from Parkwood were busted on Friday morning as the Cape Flats communities were plunged into darkness as a result of the ongoing thefts.
Grassy Park Saps commander Dawood Laing says as cops arrived on shift, they were told by concerned residents about the electricity supply being cut off due to the tampering of the boxes along Klip Road.
“They have been tampering with the boxes and breaking them open to steal cables and breakers which they sell,” Laing explains.
“On Friday morning residents called officers to complain about the ongoing thefts and while on patrol in Klip Road, officers spotted three suspicious males as they walked away from one of the electrical boxes.
“When approached, the one threw a knife over a wall and the other ran away and was cornered. It was discovered that two boxes on Klip Road were damaged.”
He says officers were alerted to a nearby camera and on checking the footage, the skelms could clearly be seen using the long knife to break the electrical boxes.
“A third suspect was identified on the footage and later arrested,” Laing adds.
“The three suspects, aged between 18 and 25, are all from Parkwood and will appear in the Wynberg Magistrate’s Court on Monday on various charges.”
He says the estimated cost of the damage is R80 000 and it was understood that one of the boxes had been repaired just a week earlier.
“These types of thefts are damaging the infrastructure in our communities and I applaud the good work done by the officers to catch these guys,” Laing adds.