An employee of the eThekwini Municipality was reported by an anonymous community member for offloading diesel from a water tanker, on the 11th February 2025.
He was arrested and appeared in court, the next day.
The City said in a statement on Tuesday, the truck was supposed to be at City Fleet to repair a tyre and that the driver was on leave at the time of the incident.
Head of the City Integrity and Investigations Unit, Jimmy Ngcobo said “the Municipality is losing millions of rands due to theft of diesel and other Municipal resources. Further investigations revealed that the theft of diesel has been happening for over two years. The suspect was selling the diesel for R13 per litre, which is extremely cheap compared to the current diesel rate. He was generating about R5 200 from a 400-litre tank.”
Ngcobo also said there are trucks that are spending too much on diesel per month.
He said employees who are caught committing fraud or corruption cannot resign to escape an internal disciplinary case as there is a moratorium preventing employees with criminal cases from leaving their employment.
“We encourage residents to report fraud and corruption as it directly impacts them as it deprives communities of service delivery they deserve.”
The public can report fraud and corruption by calling 0800 20 20 20 or email ombuds@durban.gov.za
Picture: Supplied