Railway track, Transnet, Petros Vinigran, jail, imprisonment, Pretoria Regional Court, theft of essential infrastructure, illegal immigrant, NPA, National Prosecuting Authority

26-year-old Petros Vinigran pleaded guilty to theft and to entering South Africa illegally. Photo: @NPA_Prosecutes / Twitter

Saboteur behind bars: Zimbabwean who stole railway tracks in SA jailed

Illegal immigrant Petros Vinigran was sentenced to six years behind bars for stealing R132 000 worth of railway track belonging to Transnet.

Railway track, Transnet, Petros Vinigran, jail, imprisonment, Pretoria Regional Court, theft of essential infrastructure, illegal immigrant, NPA, National Prosecuting Authority

26-year-old Petros Vinigran pleaded guilty to theft and to entering South Africa illegally. Photo: @NPA_Prosecutes / Twitter

26-year-old Petros Vinigran has been sentenced to six years in jail after being caught with pieces of railway track. It’s been alleged that Vinigran stripped and stole the pieces. He was found guilty of theft of essential infrastructure.

Illegal immigrant in SA sentenced in Pretoria

Vinigran, who is Zimbabwean, is also in SA illegally. He was sentenced at the Pretoria Regional Court on Wednesday, 25 May. Spokesperson for the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) Lumka Mahajana said the accused pleaded guilty to the theft and to entering SA illegally.

Mahajana explained that Vinigran was caught stealing locomotive bearings by security guards. The incident occurred on 27 October 2021 at the Koedoespoort campus. 

The items Vinigran stole have a value of R132 000 and belonged to Transnet SA.

“On October 27 2021, at Koedoespoort campus on a functional railway line, Vingiran was found by security guards stealing locomotive bearings valued at R132,000 that belonged to Transnet. The guards alerted the police and he was arrested on the scene,”

said Mahajana.

Court requested to impose the prescribed minimum sentence

Mahajana said Prosecutor Dru Ramsamy requested that the court impose a prescribed minimum sentence on Vinigran.

“Prosecutor Dru Ramsamy asked the court to impose a prescribed minimum sentence, because of the effects this type of offence had in the community. Money that is supposed to be spent on developing communities is instead spent on replacing damaged items and tightening security,”

said Mahajana.

Ramsamy stated that above being an illegal immigrant, Vinigran had no regard for the laws of SA.

TimesLIVE reported that the NPA welcomed Vinigran’s sentence.

 Petros Vinigran’s sentence has been welcomed by the National Prosecuting Authority. Photo: @NPA_Prosecutes / Twitter

Endlovini five: Alleged Khayelitsha mass murderer granted R8000 bail

In other news, one of the three suspects arrested in connection with the mass shooting in Endlovini, Khayelitsha was granted bail by the local Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday, 25 May.

National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) spokesperson Eric Ntabazalila said Madoda Zwayi was granted bail despite the State’s “vigorous opposition” to his application.

Zwayi was the first suspect arrested in connection was the shooting that place in New Monwabisi Park, Khayelitsha on 14 March. Four men and a woman were killed when unknown suspects opened fire on their homes. Read the full story here.