Four men arrested for the alleged vandalism and theft carried out at the Aloes Electrical Substation during September 2023 were remanded in custody at a Court appearance in Gqeberha last month. The damage to the substation caused numerous electrical power cuts.
Captain Madikzela, Head of Visible Policing at SAPS Swartkops, told the Echo further investigation was concentrating on determining the cost of the damages, to ensure that the final charges brought against the four would be substantial.
Captain Madikzela said SAPS wanted to send a clear message to the criminals that vandalism of infrastructure in our area would not be tolerated.
The arrest of the four suspects followed wonderful cooperation among SAPS, Private Security, BWB Neighbourhood Watch/iPatrol and ordinary residents of Bluewater Bay!
The Aloes Substation had been broken into no fewer than seven times in a 15-day period, causing plenty of frustration for Bluewater Bay residents, who faced unplanned power cuts during that time. One of those attacks left local residents without electricity for 19 hours!
According to Craig Hendricks, Chairman of BWB iPatrol, it was discovered that the criminals were gaining access through the roof of the substation, and then merely walked out through a door that could be unlocked from the inside of the building. The Metro supplied a set of keys to the substation to iPatrol who, on the morning of 24 September, bolted the door that had been used for the escapes.
That night, the criminals were back. But what they did not know, was that their every move entering the property was being captured on an infrared security camera, which sent an alert through to iPatrol, and that their escape route through the door had been blocked.
A call went out to SAPS who arrived with a private security company – each service had a dog unit. They unlocked the substation and took all four surprised and trapped suspects into custody!
Clearly impressed by the actions of all those in Bluewater Bay involved in the arrest of the suspects, and the repairs to the substation carried out by residents of Bluewater Bay, the Metro has now assigned a private security company to protect the substation around the clock.
