MEMBER OF IZINYOKA SENTENCED TO 15 YEARS FOR DAMAGING ESSENTIAL INFRASTRUCTURE
The Motherwell Regional Court has sentenced Ayabulela Nkole (29), to an effective 15-year imprisonment term, after convicting him on charges of tempering and destroying essential infrastructure, and theft of ferrous or non-ferrous metal, which form part of essential infrastructure. The court sentenced him to 15 years for each of the two counts but ordered the sentences to run concurrently.
On the night of 15 May 2021, Nkole was spotted pulling a power cable by Nelson Mandela Bay Metro officers who were travelling on Ngedle Street, in Motherwell, Gqeberha. The streetlights were off at that moment and when Police approached, Nkole started running away. The officers managed to catch him not far from where the cable was stolen, was taken back to the scene and later to the police station.
During the trial, Nkole pleaded not guilty, but evidence led by prosecutor Sicelo Hina, including that of the Metro officer who effected the arrest, convinced the court. Addressing the court in aggravation of sentence, the prosecutor argued that cable theft was a serious and prevalent offence, which has a crippling effect not only on the livelihoods of communities but on the economy of the country.
Eastern Cape Director of Public Prosecutions, Barry Madolo, said the sentence must serve as a deterrent to other would-be cable thieves, who seem to be taking advantage of the current electricity crisis to deepen the suffering of the society.
