Sizable quantities of copper-made fiber optic cables stolen and smuggled into Morocco

Algeria Telecom has been confronted for several months now with the lingering problem of the deliberate theft of fibre optic cables by mafia-like smugglers across the various constituencies

Of the wilaya or province of Tlemcen, which, in addition to the estimated financial loss of about 25,000,000 DA, negatively impacts inevitably on the quality of its provisions of service. 

The stolen cables whose length is more than 18.200 km, are wrenched with the help of special heavy machinery and  fraudulently smuggled into  nearby Morocco, where they are sold at low prices easily as 

demand for copper there is important.

But thanks to the security services’ vigilance, a sizable number of these stolen cables has been retrieved in anti-smuggling operations in various parts of the country and several smugglers involved in the theft of these fiber optic and electric cables have been rounded up and remanded in custody before being brought before justice.

Algeria Telecom subsidiary (AT) based in western Aïn Témouchent province wasn’t also spared by the wanton theft of telephone cables. Indeed, for the year 2014, (AT) recorded thefts of over three kilometers of cables in the areas of Tamzoura, Hammam Bou Hadjar and Oulhaca  with a financial setback  of some 150 million centimes. 

During the past two years, this heavy financial loss has exceeded  560 million Dinars,  the operational Director of telecommunications in Aïn Temouchen province told local media outlets.

This adverse situation resulted in a slowdown in the achievement  of projects of modernization of equipment of the public operator, which provides a connection of fiber-optic broad band internet to virtually all localities whose population reaches or exceeds  1,000 people.