More than 480 suspected illegal miners, including four juveniles, packed the Barberton Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday in a marathon appearance linked to one of Mpumalanga’s largest crackdowns on illicit mining. The accused, mostly foreign nationals, face a range of charges including trespassing, theft of gold-bearing material, and contravention of the Immigration Act. Authorities say the… Continue reading Barberton’s Biggest Illegal Mining Case Unfolds in Court
Tag: Operation Vala Umgodi
Seven Suspects, including Five Foreign Nationals, Arrested for Running Illegal Gold Processing Laboratory in Limpopo
The Limpopo Police’s Vala Umgodi Task Team arrested four foreign nationals following the discovery of an illegal gold processing laboratory in Tzaneen on Saturday. They nabbed three Zimbabweans and a Mozambican when they raided a plot along the R71 near Tarentaalrand, Mopani District, in the northern part of South Africa. Zimbabweans John Vondo (39), Hardlife… Continue reading Seven Suspects, including Five Foreign Nationals, Arrested for Running Illegal Gold Processing Laboratory in Limpopo
South African Government Vows To Escalate Crackdown On Illegal Miners
The South African government has reasserted its authority over illegal miners and vowed to escalate its crackdown, saying they are criminal elements who took over and used abandoned mines to perpetrate crime. President Cyril Ramaphosa’s administration has refused to back down on its demands that hundreds of illegal miners holed up in a disused mine… Continue reading South African Government Vows To Escalate Crackdown On Illegal Miners