By JACKSON MAPAPAYI
POLICE in Mwinilunga have apprehended a suspect for stealing 3, 000 meters copper service cables valued at K330, 000 belonging to the Rural Electrification Authority (REA).
According to North Western Province deputy commissioner of police Dr Fred Mulenga, the arrest follows the report of theft which was reported by Chris Munyat an employee of REA that service cables were stolen by unknown people.
Dr Mulenga said incident occurred between Tuesday 19:00 hours and Wednesday 06:00 hours at Kasangezhi primary school Mwinilunga District where they were kept.
He said acting on the report police instituted investigations.
He said on Thursday around 02:00 hours police received a tip from reliable source that some buckets containing copper cables were loaded on the Power Tools bus at Mwinilunga main bus station
“Without any hesitation police rushed to the aforementioned station where 08 x 20 liters buckets, 01 Black suit case and a laptop bag containing naked copper wires were recovered from the boots of Power Tools bus Zhong Thong make registration number AIB 9867 black and yellow in colour,” said Dr Mulenga.
He said in the process of searching,one passenger namely Joe Chalanta aged 33 of Kitwe Town sneaked from the bus and started running away but police gave chase and managed to apprehend him about 500 meters away from the bus station.
He said upon searching him he was found with a cable striper (knife), gloves, 05 bus tickets and some naked copper wires in his black bomber and revealed that he was not alone but with other five male persons.
“He then willfully led the police to the scene where the insulators of the cables in question were burnt from,” he said.
He said Investigations are still under way to pick four other persons who are at large.
