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Nhlanhla Mbele
THREE Gweru men ran out of luck after they were arrested and dragged to court for allegedly stealing copper from a Zimbabwe Electricity
Transmission Distribution Company (ZETDC) transformer.
The trio of Lot Gaka (42), James Dzane and Zebedia Chemhere, both whose ages were not mentioned, were hauled before the Bulawayo
Magistrates Courts for theft and vandalism.
The case against the accused is that on 10 June, the duo of Dzane and Chemhere connived to steal a transformer belonging to the power supply utility and stripped it of copper.
The alleged theft occurred at a ZETDC power line at the 424-kilometre peg along the Harare/Bulawayo Highway where they managed to remove the transformer and placed it on the ground, using unknown objects.
It is alleged that the two stripped the transformer and stole copper conductors, which they sold to Gaka for US$156.
The crime came to light when Gaka was caught in possession of the stolen copper and implicated Dzane and Chemhere who were arrested by the police.
Appearing in court the trio was charged with Contravening Section 60A (3b) of the Electricity Act Chapter 13:19, which prohibits “receiving or taking any possession of any material used in connection with generation, transmission, distribution or supply of electricity”.
The case was referred to the Regional Court for trial.
Online Reporter