An Eskom employee and a female truck driver have been arrested after they allegedly stole power-generating fuel oil worth R1 million. Sphiwe Sindane (36) and 41- year-old Loveless Mabaso, who are both attached to a company subcontracted to supply heavy fuel oil to Eskom, were arrested on Wednesday.

The pair's arrest comes after they failed to deliver heavy fuel oil that was meant to be delivered to the Matla Power Station in Mpumalanga. It's alleged that the pair sold and delivered the fuel oil to someone known to them and later submitted a fraudulent invoice to Eskom, claiming to have delivered the fuel. Eskom suffered a loss of R1 million. National police spokesperson Brigadier Athlenda Mathe said according to Eskom, the heavy fuel oil is instrumental in electricity production. "An investigation by the Priority Committee on Security Energy led to the pair's arrest," Mathe said.

Mathe said the two suspects appeared before the Kriel Magistrates' Court yesterday on charges of theft and fraud. Since the establishment of the Priority Committee on Security Energy, led by the National Police Commissioner General Fannie Masemola, 1586 Eskom-related cases have been investigated. Mathe said 126 arrests have been made thus far while R1 billion worth of items have been recovered which includes 42 firearms, 83 loads of coal by 33-ton trucks and mining machinery.