Six men will appear in the Kempton Park Magistrates Court today, for trying to steal R1.6 million worth of cellphones at OR Tambo International Airport.
National police spokesman captain Dennis Adriao says the men, aged between 26 and 38, were arrested on Monday, while trying to load the mobile phones onto a truck in the cargo section at the airport.
Adriao says the phones landed in SA from China and were due to be sold in the local market. He did not know which brands were among the cargo that police recovered.
One of the suspected thieves works in the cargo section of a Chinese airline, says Adriao. He says the South African Police Service picked up the fact that the documentation for the cellphones would be altered by the staff member and the phones then diverted onto a truck driven by other accomplices.
Adriao cannot reveal how the police were alerted to the alleged crime, saying: “I don't want to wise up the criminals.” He also would not name the airline involved.
Detectives are still investigating, and further arrests may be made, says Adriao. All of the alleged thieves are from Alexandra, near Sandton.
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