Neelam Rahim | neelam@radioislam.co.za

1 min read – 11:45 am

In a continued effort to disrupt illegal mining activities and fight the proliferation of illegal firearms, the police in Sophiatown arrested three illegal miners and seized an AK-47 rifle with ammunition.

Under the Command of the Station Commander of Sophiatown, Brigadier Bonginkosi Ndebele led the operation after receiving a tip-off about heavily armed people involved in illegal mining going down within the area.

This is the area where six bodies of suspected illegal miners were found about two weeks ago.

Written by OperaNews last week, six men thought to be illegal miners were discovered dead near the N1 highway on Wednesday. However, locals believe that an enraged mob of community members was to blame for their deaths. This can be one more reason why South Africans are jaded with illegal miners.

Many encourage the police to continue excelling because they have done so well.

The police will continue strengthening efforts to fight crime through various crime prevention operations, including the weekly multi-disciplinary Operation O Kae Molao.

Mining evading state approval, mainly when there aren’t any land rights, mining licenses, exploration or transportation permits, is considered illegal.