In the dead of night, a group of 14 Mozambican illegal miners—known as zama zamas—thought they could slip past the watchful eyes of the police after months of hiding deep within Stilfontein’s Shaft 10. But as the clock struck midnight, they found themselves caught in a well-coordinated operation that ended their covert underground existence.
According to National Police spokesperson, Athlenda Mathe, the illegal miners had resurfaced after choosing the cover of darkness, assuming the authorities had dispersed. “They thought the coast was clear, that the police were no longer there. But they were wrong,” Mathe stated. Despite some of them trying to scurry back into the shaft upon spotting the officers, the police were quick to apprehend all 14 men.
The operation, which involved a blend of strategic waiting and tactical planning, also revealed chilling details about the miners’ lives underground. During questioning, the arrested miners disclosed a grim reality: armed individuals within the mine had seized all food and water, hoarding it for themselves to ensure the illegal operations could continue uninterrupted. “The food was being confiscated by heavily armed men inside the shaft, and they refused to distribute it to others. They want to keep mining for as long as possible,” Mathe revealed. The situation painted a stark picture of the dangers faced by those caught in the world of illegal mining—where control and power are as scarce as resources.
Among the miners was a 14-year-old boy, one of the youngest to be arrested. He explained that he had taken the job after his parents, both unemployed, struggled to make ends meet. “I didn’t really know much about the work. I just needed something to survive,” the teenager confessed. The miners, many of whom were unaware of the full extent of the illegal mining operations, were recruited from various areas, including Tembisa, with promises of work that turned out to be far from what they had expected.
While the authorities continue to process the arrested men, they remain determined to break the hold that illegal mining has over these impoverished communities. The police’s work isn’t over—while 14 miners are now in custody, many others remain trapped in the depths of the shafts, still at the mercy of both the brutal conditions underground and the dangerous figures who exploit them.
As law enforcement efforts intensify, the community of Stilfontein remains on edge, awaiting the next move in this ongoing battle to bring an end to the criminal underworld that thrives beneath the surface.
