A 27-year-old Mpumalanga man was arrested for allegedly threatening to bomb Eskom chief operations officer (COO) Jan Oberholzer.
The power utility said on Saturday that police swooped on the suspect on Friday. It said Oberholzer received a bomb threat from an unknown cellphone number in May and an investigation ensued.
“The internal security investigations team immediately lodged criminal charges on behalf of the Eskom group COO with the South African Police Service for investigation. It was also established that the suspect used an unregistered sim card to send the threatening message,” Eskom said.
“On Friday morning, the Hawks and contracted investigators from Bidvest Protea Coin, traced and arrested a 27-year-old male suspect. There was overwhelming evidence linking him to the crime. The suspect was arrested by the South African Police Service (SAPS) in the Vosman area at eMalahleni, Mpumalanga. He remains in custody ahead of his court appearance next week.”
The general manager of security at Eskom advocate Karen Pillay said that other Eskom executives had also been targeted in recent months,” said Pillay.
Pillay said: “The targeting of Eskom executives and employees who are focused and hard at work during these difficult times is very disturbing. Such acts of criminality are malicious, and Eskom takes them seriously.
“This nature and level of threats, therefore, demand, that they focus on their personal safety and that of their families instead, distracting them from the critical task their jobs demand of them.”
Eskom said it would provide the necessary support to the SAPS to help ensure the suspect is successfully prosecuted and that a stiff sanction is meted out to deter other would-be offender.
Andre de Ruyter, Eskom CEO, who has received numerous threats, is accompanied by two personal protectors at all times.
Source: Business Tech, News24, IOL, The Citizen, Times Live, image from Twitter: @koko_matshela