Following their arrest for theft of railway tracks in Mpumalanga, two suspects are scheduled to appear in the Nelspruit Magistrate’s Court on Monday.

The suspects, who are 31 and 38 years old, were taken into custody by Nelspruit Flying Squad members on Friday.

Captain Dineo Sekgotodi, the provincial spokesperson for the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (Hawks), reported that at around two in the morning, Flying Squad members responded to information regarding a truck that was carrying railway rails.

“The team identified a truck that was driving along the N4 highway near Schagen. They stopped and searched the truck. Upon the search, railway tracks covered under a blue tarpaulin were found,” Sekgotodi said.

“The driver was requested to verify the load. He complied and showed a document in the form of a photo from his cellphone as proof that the load was legal.”

But after being called to the crime scene, investigators from the Hawks’ Nelspruit-based Serious Organised Crime Investigation team assumed charge of the case.

“During the preliminary investigation, it was discovered that the same modus operandi was used in another case,” Sekgotodi said.

“The driver was informed that the documents were not legal and that [SA Police Service] SAPS members escorted the truck to Nelspruit SAPS.”

The exhibits had been confiscated for additional investigation when the accused were taken into custody.

On behalf of Transnet, a case of tampering with, destroying, and possessing allegedly stolen property was opened.

The investigation is ongoing.