Sixteen individuals have been arrested across several districts in Limpopo province as part of the ongoing police crackdown on illegal mining activities under Operation Vala Umgodi, authorities confirmed.
In the Maake policing area within the Mopani district, a 32-year-old man was detained after being found loading sand into a white UD truck. Police said he was unable to produce a valid mining permit when questioned. Officers seized the truck along with two shovels and a pickaxe.
Elsewhere in the Capricorn district, three men aged between 21 and 38 were apprehended for conducting illegal sand mining at the Tudumo River near Mogodi Village. A truck and seven shovels were confiscated at the scene.
In a separate operation in the Waterberg district, police spotted a truck being filled with sand at Tshamahansi village in Mahwelereng. A 65-year-old man was arrested on the spot after failing to present a mining permit.
The bulk of the arrests occurred in the Sekhukhune district, where ten suspects aged between 19 and 42 were taken into custody. Additionally, one undocumented foreign national was detained during the Maake operation.
Police said investigations into all the cases are ongoing, as efforts to clamp down on illegal mining intensify across the province.
