The Sunday News
Rutendo Nyeve, Sunday News Correspondent
A Bulawayo duo has been sentenced to an effective 10 years in prison for stealing 266 kilogrammes of Zesa overhead copper cables valued at US$5 320.
Sherperd Ncube (32) and Forster Ncube (39) of 8464 Pumula East and K157 Njube respectively pleaded guilty to contravening section 60A (3a)(b) of the electricity chapter 13:19 “cut, damage, destroy or interfere with any apparatus used for generation, transmission, distribution or supply of electricity when
they appeared before a Bulawayo regional magistrate on Thursday.
Sentencing the duo, the magistrate said he considered that the two were in their 30s and were first offenders but considered that this was a serious offence with a mandatory sentence of 10 years.
The magistrate ruled that an Isuzu truck that was used to carry the stolen cables will be confisticated by the State.
The magistrate, however, reminded the pair that they can appeal against the sentence within seven days.
In mitigation the duo said they were first offenders with Ncube saying if he is sentenced to the mandatory 10 years, he would come out of prison at the age of 50 hence pleading for leniency.
Prosecuting, Mr Jethro Mada told the court that on 24 March at around 2 am, the two, together with Blessing Ndlovu, Wonder Sibanda and Ndumiso Dube who are still at large hatched a plan to steal Zesa copper conductors and proceeded to the intersection of Alwyn Park road and Fairbaks road in Hope Fountain where they threw a rope on top of the electricity wires, deliberately causing a short circuit.
The court heard the group then used a bolt cutter to cut and steal four spans of overhead copper conductors.
The following morning police officers received information to the effect that the arrested pair were in possession of the copper cables at house in Nkulamane leading to their arrest.
The latest incident comes at a time when the country has witnessed an increase in vandalism of electricity cables.
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