By Lebone Rodah Mosima
A dump truck driver who was paid R12 500 for transporting and dumping five loads of zircon weighing about 60 tons and worth R1.6 million has been sentenced to an effective 10 years in prison.
On Wednesday, the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) said it had secured the sentence against 36-year-old Siphamandla Mdletshe in the Richards Bay Regional Court after he pleaded guilty, in terms of Section 112(2) of the Criminal Procedure Act 51 of 1977, to the theft of a mineral product.
The zircon belonged to Richards Bay Minerals (RBM), and the offence occurred in March 2024 in the KwaMbonambi area of KwaZulu-Natal.
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“In his plea explanation, Mdletshe stated that he was employed by a contractor at RBM as a dump truck driver. During his employment, he was approached by a fellow
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