A City of Johannesburg councillor and 22 other suspects have been arrested for allegedly hijacking a R40m metro property intended for use by the metro police.
In addition, a preliminary investigation by the Johannesburg metro police department (JMPD) uncovered allegations that a senior member of the SA Police Service may be involved in the “ongoing invasion of the property”, executive mayor Kabelo Gwamanda said.
The JMPD led a sting operation at the city property, which was bought in 2019 for use as a pound. When officials arrived at the property, they were met by a group “claiming to be contracted by the owner of the site to undertake construction work”.
Mayoral spokesperson Mlimandlela Ndamase said the property had been identified as a possible site for temporary accommodation for victims of the fire that razed a five-storey, hijacked building in the Joburg CBD on Thursday last week, in which 77 people died and scores were injured.
Gwamanda said the operation resulted in the arrest of 23 suspects, among them “a councillor of the city”. The suspects face charges of malicious damage to property and city infrastructure, theft and vandalism.
“According to the preliminary investigation by the JMPD, there are allegations that a senior member of the SA Police Service (SAPS) may be involved in the ongoing invasion of the property,” Gwamanda said.
The suspects have been detained at the Joburg central police station. A forklift and earth-moving and building equipment found on site were seized.
“Our approach to illegality is now driven with greater urgency and firmness. It’s our intention to ensure that we prevent any further loss of life and disasters in the city as a result of illegally occupied and hijacked buildings,” Gwamanda said.
“We are adopting a zero-tolerance approach and will be extending our operations to target those buildings belonging to the city that are in the hands of criminal syndicates.”
Gwamanda said the councillor’s arrest will be communicated to the speaker of council, Colleen Makhubele. The executive mayor expressed disappointment that “such allegations have arose against the very persons we would expect to be the custodians of city properties and proponents of law and order”.
Gauteng human settlements MEC Lebogang Maile told Business Day on Tuesday the provincial government was going to court for eviction orders to remove those occupying buildings illegally.
Maile said they started a process to evict illegal occupiers a while ago. “We will go back to the courts” for eviction orders, he said. “Whether they are foreigners or South Africans, anyone who is occupying [a building] illegally” will be evicted.
“We need the courts to evict them. We are a law-abiding government. We are governed by the constitution. You can’t remove people unless you have a court order.”
Former Johannesburg mayor and ActionSA president Herman Mashaba said when he left office in 2019 his administration had identified more than “600 hijacked buildings” in the central business district. Of those, 154 had been “passed through council and awarded to the private sector to build affordable accommodation.”
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