Two eThekwini Municipality employees arrested for diesel theft
One of the eThekwini Municipality water trucks that was allegedly caught offloading diesel at a private residence.
Image: eThekwini Municipality
Two eThekwini Municipality employees have been arrested after they were caught stealing diesel meant for municipal operations.
The City said the arrests were made last week in eKukhanyeni, near Verulam, after investigators followed up on reports of suspicious activity involving municipal water trucks.
The Municipality confirmed that one municipal water truck was caught offloading diesel at a private residence, while another was parked next to the gate of the same residence. Both trucks were reportedly carrying water intended for delivery to communities.
According to the City, a case of theft was opened at the Inanda Police Station, and the suspects are expected to appear in court. Investigators found 12 containers of diesel, each with a 25-litre capacity, totalling 300 litres of stolen fuel.
At a recent Executive Committee (Exco) meeting it was revealed that the City had spent R86 million on fuel for fleet vehicles in the first three months of this year.
The Head of the City Integrity and Investigations Unit (CIIU), Jimmy Ngcobo, commended the team behind the arrests. 'Further investigations will be conducted in this area as it is alleged that diesel is frequently offloaded there,' said Ngcobo.
This table supplied by the eThekwini Municipality shows the cases in the 2024/25 financial year.
Image: eThekwini Municipality
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