Three young boys were caught red-handed last Saturday while stealing avocados from the Matibe field at Ha-Maelula. A fourth youngster handed himself over to the family after discovering that his friends had been caught. They will have to appear before the Ramabulana Royal Council this Sunday (3rd) for a decision about their fate.
When the young thieves were apprehended, they were allegedly in possession of 19 crates of avocados that were stolen on Saturday and 13 that were stolen on Sunday.
A source close to the family described the young men as lazy school drop-outs who did not want to go out and work like other young men.
Community members who have avocado orchards at Ha-Maelula are hardly able to harvest anything, due to the regular theft of their produce. One of the owners, Mr Tector Matibe, said that it had been years since he had last harvested any avocados. "Every year I find the trees with nothing but leaves," said Matibe.
Mr Matibe said that last weekend he acted on a tip-off and caught the suspects red-handed. The offence was reported to the Ramabulana Royal Council. A member of the royal council, Queen Thelma Ramabulana, said that such thefts had been a huge problem for years now. She commended members of the community for not taking the law into their own hands.