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Leonard Ncube, Victoria Falls Reporter

MEMBERS of the community in St Luke’s, Lupane, helped apprehend a villager who is suspected to be part of a gang that has been tempering with electricity lines, stealing cables and transformer oil.

Innocent Sibanda (34) of Mafinyela State land in the area was apprehended by villagers who traced vehicle tyre marks from a community borehole, where 420 litres of transformer oil and 183kg of copper cables had been stolen leaving the community without electricity and water last week Thursday.

Sibanda’s two suspected accomplices Nkosilathi Tshuma and Morningstar Dube reportedly escaped when they saw a group of villagers approaching their hideout.

The arrest of Sibanda follows a series of cases concerning tempering of electricity lines in Lupane and other parts of the country.

Sibanda appeared before Lupane magistrate Mr Ndumo Masuku yesterday, where he was charged with cutting, damaging, destroying, or interfering with an apparatus for generating, transmitting, distributing or supplying electricity.

He was not asked to plead and was remanded in custody to 31 October. He is then set to appear at the regional court in Hwange and was advised to apply to the High Court for bail.

Prosecuting, Mr Derick Nkosilathi Ndlovu said the trio on Thursday last week at around 11pm, proceeded to Siziphile village borehole in Lupane where they tripped the Zesa transformer at the borehole.

They allegedly drained transformer oil amounting to 420 litres and cut the transformer copper windings weighing 183kg.

“On the 14^th day of October, villagers discovered that the transformer had been tempered with and there were fresh tyre marks leading away from the scene towards St Luke’s Business Centre. Villagers followed the tyre marks which led them to Dube’s homestead,” said Mr Ndlovu.

The court was told that on seeing the villagers approaching, the trio ran away.

Villagers gave chase and managed to apprehend Sibanda who was handed to the police.

It was not stated in court if the contraband was recovered.

Meanwhile, security agents deployed at Beitbridge border recently intercepted suspected stolen copper cables worth nearly US$100 000 that were being smuggled into South Africa.

The Zimbabwe Electricity Transmission and Distribution Company (ZETDC) and the National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ) positively identified part of the recovered cables as theirs.

In 2021, Zesa recorded 1 237 cases of theft and vandalism resulting in huge losses of revenue, which could have been used for development.

ZETDC has said it is losing more than US$20 million per year due to vandalism and theft of electricity infrastructure.

More than 23 000 electricity customers are off the grid because of vandalism of their connections.

The power utility has equated damage of its infrastructure to economic sabotage as such criminal activities affect economic recovery, stabilisation and growth which are to attainment of Vision 2030 though National Development Strategy 1.

ZETDC has come up with a number of measures to address the situation, among them replacing copper cables that are targeted by thieves, with aluminum ones and the programme is ongoing.

The power utility has also engaged Parliament pushing for deterrent convictions and this has gotten the nod for sentences for tempering with electricity infrastructure to be raised from 10 years to 30 years.

Cabinet has since approved the Electricity Amendment Bill, which has deterrent measures for would-be offenders with removal of the option of a fine, opting for stiffer and mandatory sentences.

-@ncubeleon