NEWS & UPDATES
Sesco Remote Monitoring Technology Detects Electricity Theft
KUCHING, 25th August 2015: Syarikat SESCO Berhad (SESCO) meter inspection team raided a detached house located at Jalan Simpang Tiga after SESCO’s meter remote monitoring system detected abnormal reading.
The raid, which took place early this month, discovered that the house’s electricity meter wiring system was tampered with.
The team comprised SESCO meter inspection personnel, auxiliary police, police and inspectors from the Electrical Inspectorate Unit of the Ministry of Public Utilities. Upon inspection, it was found that the meter compartment security seal was missing indicating that the meter and its wiring systems have been compromised.
In addition, a SESCO spokesperson confirmed that the said customer had a history of repeated meter tampering cases since 2011 with the most recent case detected at the end of last year.
“This customer has been under SESCO’s close monitoring list and we installed the remote metering device to enable monitoring and downloading of the meter’s data remotely. The meter’s data is being read by SESCO on a daily basis which allows us to detect any attempts to tamper.
“The remote metering technology is installed mainly for repeat offenders so as to monitor any re-tampering activities. The technology has assisted SESCO to detect tampering swiftly and thus also help deter future attempts,” said the spokesperson.
SESCO’s meters security seal must be intact at all times as only SESCO authorized personnel are allowed to remove the seal. Further investigation in the raid revealed that part of the wirings had been deliberately cut resulting in the meter only registering a small fraction of the actual electricity consumption used by the household.
This house owner apparently was caught using the same method to steal electricity in the last raid.
All the exhibits were seized by SESCO meter inspection team for prosecution purpose. Police report also had been lodged and the house owner shall be called to assist in the investigation.
SESCO continues to seek the cooperation from members of the public. The number to call is 082-44 35 35 or email customercare@sarawakenergy.com.my. All calls or emails will be kept strictly confidential. Stealing electricity is a dangerous crime and punishable under section 33(5) of the Electricity Ordinance with a fine up to RM100,000 or imprisonment of five years or both.
