MTN South Africa said continuous load shedding had made its mobile towers vulnerable to thieves and vandalism. The mobile network operator said that due to power outages, additional on-site security had to be deployed to protect the batteries, generators and general site equipment as darkness made these sites vulnerable to criminal acts.
MTN communications and public relations manager Mthokozisi Ndlovu said: “Network operators across the country have been battling sophisticated syndicates that have been stealing batteries daily. However, load shedding is seeing entire neighbourhoods cloaked in darkness at predictable times, which is offering criminals greater cover for their thieving.
Seventy-five incidents ranging from battery theft, property vandalism and cable theft have been reported in the province over the past two months. The affected areas include Belville, Goodwood, N7 rural, North West Cape rural, Paarl, Pinelands, Simonstown, Mitchells Plain, Stellenbosch and Vredenburg. Apart from the money spent on new batteries for cellphone towers, MTN spent approximately R300 million in 2018 on batteries for existing sites.
MTN general manager Paul Ernest said the high levels of theft of cellphone tower batteries was worrying and unfortunately not ending. Over 2 000 incidents of battery theft were reported across the country at MTN towers alone last year.
Ernest added: “Some batteries have been recovered and several arrests were made over recent months. But it’s not enough. These criminals are brazen and continue to cause millions of rand of damage. Equipment such as generators, aircons, security infrastructure and fencing is also being damaged and stolen. The theft of diesel and cables is also rife.”
Anti-crime activist Yusuf Abramjee said investigations showed that most of the stolen batteries were being smuggled into neighbouring countries and called on the police to intervene. We are calling for improved border control and increased policing at cellphone towers.
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Source: IOL
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