Police Seize $10 Million Worth of Stolen Goods: Trailers, Equipment, Machinery, Forklifts, and Signal Jammers Recovered
Potchefstroom – Authorities have confiscated multiple truck trailers, vehicle components, heavy machinery, forklifts, signal jammers, and copper plates from a farm located in Ventersdorp.
The estimated value of the suspected stolen goods amounts to R10 million.
A joint effort involving Ventersdorp police, Rustenburg K9 unit, and a security firm led to the discovery at a Ventersdorp farm on Friday, (28 March 2025).
“Preliminary investigations revealed that a truck carrying R6 million worth of copper plates was reportedly hijacked in Kwa-Zulu Natal, in Escort, a few days before this find,” stated police spokesperson Colonel Adéle Myburgh.
“The truck was en route to Durban harbor as the copper was intended for export and was under surveillance by the security company.”
The truck trailer was attached to another vehicle, and the original truck, which was hijacked, was discovered abandoned nearby shortly after the incident.
“When officers raided the farm, they found that some of the copper plates had already been unloaded from the hijacked trailer and were in the process of being cut into smaller pieces using heavy machinery,” informed Colonel Myburgh.
“During the search of the property, authorities uncovered five additional trailers that had been stolen in Alberton, Vosloorus, and Soweto in Gauteng.
“Four suspects, all male and aged between 20 and 50, have been apprehended.”
They are set to appear in the Ventersdorp Magistrate’s Court on charges of possession of suspected stolen property.
The Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (DPCI) will oversee the case.
Further investigations may reveal additional charges against the suspects.
The Acting Provincial Police Commissioner, Major General Patrick Asaneng, praised the collaboration between law enforcement and the security company for the successful operation.
He underscored the importance of community involvement in combating crime, stating that the police rely on the public as their eyes and ears.