Police in South Africa are investigating two separate incidents of theft at cell towers in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.

South Coast Herald reports that thieves have stolen eight batteries across two cell sites in Mgolemi and Oshabeni.

The thefts took place earlier this month, with the first incident occurring at a network tower in Mgloemi, where four batteries were stolen on June 1.

The publication reports that the thieves allegedly forced entry by breaking the lock on the tower door before removing the batteries.

A day later, a similar theft was reported after four batteries were stolen from a network tower in Greenside, Oshabeni.

Police have warned that anyone found in possession of or purchasing stolen batteries faces prosecution.

Theft at tower sites has become increasingly common as thieves target the tower sites for materials such as copper, due to the metal's high street value.

However, such incidents cause network outages and lead to communities becoming disconnected, while costing telco providers thousands.

Although the issue is a global one, South African telcos have regularly battled theft in recent years.

Last year, a man in South Africa was sentenced to 47 years in prison for stealing batteries from cell towers.

Such cases have led South Africa's mobile carriers to work with police in order to deter theft.

Telkom, in partnership with the South African Police Services (SAPS), revealed in 2024 that more than 3,000 people have been arrested for such crimes, adding that the partnership has resulted in less theft at their sites.

Rival telco MTN Group paired with the Gauteng Provincial Community Police Board in March 2024 to clamp down on network infrastructure theft and vandalism, while Vodacom has also increased security at its base station sites through the installation of CCTV cameras.