Four sentenced to 41 years for City Power infrastructure crimes

City Power has welcomed the sentencing of four Lesotho nationals to a combined 41 years in prison for crimes targeting the electricity utility’s infrastructure in Roodepoort.

The four were convicted in two separate matters finalised in August and September 2026.

In the first case, three Lesotho nationals were sentenced by the Roodepoort Court on September 1 after being convicted of offences relating to essential infrastructure.

Each accused received six years’ direct imprisonment for damaging essential infrastructure, another six years for theft involving essential infrastructure and 12 months for contravening the Immigration Act.

The court ordered each of the three to serve an effective 13-year prison sentence, amounting to 39 years collectively.

They will also be deported to Lesotho after completing their sentences.

In the second case, another Lesotho national was convicted on August 26 of tampering with City Power’s essential infrastructure and sentenced to two years’ direct imprisonment.

The court also declared him unfit to possess a firearm and ordered his deportation after he completes his sentence.

City Power Acting CEO Charles Tlouane welcomed the outcomes, saying the sentences showed that criminals targeting critical infrastructure could be held accountable.

“Infrastructure crime is not a victimless crime,” Tlouane said.

He said theft, damage and tampering with electricity infrastructure disrupted supply to residents, businesses, schools and other critical facilities.

The latest convictions form part of City Power’s broader efforts to ensure that arrests for infrastructure-related offences result in successful prosecutions.

The utility recorded 35 convictions during the 2024/25 financial year, with offenders receiving a combined 272.9 years in prison.

During the 2025/26 financial year, the number of convictions increased to 36, with a combined 261.5 years of imprisonment handed down.

Between January and September 2026, City Power Security personnel arrested 148 suspects for allegedly tampering with electrical infrastructure.

Tlouane said the utility was also focused on dismantling the wider criminal networks behind infrastructure crime.

“Where evidence points to organised criminal activity, investigations need to go further and identify those who organise, facilitate, finance or benefit from the theft and destruction of essential infrastructure,” he said.

City Power recorded 1,138 infrastructure-related incidents in 2024/25 and 1,054 in 2025/26, representing a decline of about 7.4%.

Despite the reduction, the utility said infrastructure crime remained a serious threat to reliable electricity supply and placed additional pressure on its technical teams and finances.

City Power said stolen or vandalised equipment forces its teams to carry out emergency repairs and replacement work, diverting resources from planned maintenance and network upgrades.

The utility has intensified security measures, including additional security scouts to patrol switching stations and other strategic installations in Roodepoort and other hotspot areas.

It is also working with SAPS and other law enforcement agencies to strengthen intelligence gathering, investigations and prosecutions.

Residents and businesses have been urged to report suspicious activity around substations, switching stations, transformers and other electricity infrastructure.