SWAKOPMUND – A Swakopmund resident is currently receiving treatment in the local hospital after he was electrocuted and sustained serious burn injuries while allegedly stealing power cables. The incident happened on Monday evening. According to the crime investigations coordinator for the Erongo region, Erastus Iikuyu, the 20-year-old man’s crime was exposed after the power tripped around 22h30 at the Erongo RED base station behind NamWater in Swakopmund. Erongo RED apparently sent out employees on Tuesday morning to investigate the causes of the power trip. The electricians during their search for the cause found out that the cables were cut and also found blood, indicating that someone might have been electrocuted at the spot. Iikuyu indicated that the team visited the state hospital and found the suspect with serious burn wounds. “He is currently in a serious but stable condition. Erongo Red also opened a case against him for theft and malicious damage to property,” Iikuyu said. He added that the suspect caused about N$80 000 of damages to the electricity infrastructure while stealing the cables.
“The public is hereby warned not to temper with power cables because it is illegal, dangerous and they can lose their lives and also cause massive damage to our infrastructure,” he said.
– edeklerk@nepc.com.na