News24 | Three City of Tshwane officials appear in court over R7m transformer theft

Three City of Tshwane employees have been arrested in connection with electricity infrastructure theft.

• Three City of Tshwane officials were arrested for their alleged role in a transformer theft at Laudium’s Claudius substation.
• The crime syndicate allegedly used municipal vehicles and cranes, but failed to provide proper work authorisation when confronted in November 2024.
• The case has been postponed to Friday for a bail application.

Three City of Tshwane officials accused of stealing a transformer worth R7 million appeared in the Atteridgeville Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday.

Sphiwe Mahlangu, 45, from Soshanguve, Thomas Baloi, 41, from Pretoria North, and Daniel Kubayi, 50, from Hammanskraal, are facing charges of theft of essential infrastructure.

The three were arrested on Tuesday following a police investigation into a crime syndicate that reportedly began operating in November 2024. This syndicate allegedly stole a transformer worth R7 million from a Laudium substation.

According to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), on the afternoon of 7 November 2024, the Tshwane Metro Police Department and police received a tip-off about a theft taking place at the Claudius substation in Laudium.

“When they arrived at the scene, they found cranes, trucks, and a City of Tshwane-marked truck at the substation,” said NPA spokesperson Lumka Mahanjana.

“When the police requested proof of work authorisation and it could not be produced, 11 people were arrested on the scene, and 10 were later released from police custody.”

READ | Three City of Tshwane officials arrested over theft of R7m transformer

According to the police, the 10 people released were subcontractors who could not be linked to the crime.

The 11th person, Madimetja Jacob Malebane, 38, a City of Tshwane official, appeared in the Atteridgeville Magistrate’s Court on 28 November 2024.

He has since been released on bail.

Mahanjana stated that police investigations revealed Mahlangu, Baloi, and Kubayi allegedly left the scene before the police arrived.

The police issued warrants of arrest, and the three accused were apprehended at their workplaces on Tuesday.

The matter was postponed to Friday for a bail application.