Drugs, dagga and counterfeit liquor were seized during Operation Shanela which was conducted in different parts of the province and several arrests were made.
In the first incident, today, Tuesday 14 November 2023 three suspects aged 26, 34 and 37 years were arrested during the operation at Botleng and Mathombeni in Delmas.
Police received information about a man in Mathombeni who was selling drugs. Upon searching the house police recovered 109 ziploc bags of rock cocaine hidden inside a couch with an estimated street value of R6 450-00 and R7 811-70 in cash. Two suspects aged 26 and 34 were immediately arrested.
At Botleng police recovered 369 pinches of heroin to be estimated at the street value of R 11 070-00 and cash amount of R 1 160-00. The suspect was arrested and charged with dealing in drugs.
The three are expected to appear in Delmas District Court tomorrow, Wednesday 15 November 2023.
In Dullstroom today, police recovered 43 bags starched with dagga on the R540 believed to have been abandoned by the suspects who were en route to Lydenburg. It is suspected that the suspects were informed about police operations in the vicinity and decided to offload it. 280 kg of dagga with an estimated street value of R 280 000-00 was seized.
A Chinese couple, Ming Lin (54) and Meixui Lin (52) appeared before the Evander Magistrate’s Court for possession of counterfeit alcohol and bribery.
Their appearance came after they were arrested on Friday, 10 November 2023 in Leslie. Police received information about the owner of the liquor outlet that was selling counterfeit alcohol. It is alleged that the couple use to bring more stock to the country illegally. The seized alcohol is estimated at R950 000-00. The suspects allegedly tried to bribe police with R20 000-00. They were both arrested and charged for illicit alcohol and bribing law enforcement.
The couple were released on R20 000-00 bail each.
The Provincial Commissioner of the South African Police Service in Mpumalanga Lieutenant General Semakaleng Daphney Manamela has appreciated the hard work done by the men and women in blue and thanked the community for providing the police with information as drugs are problematic to our youth and destroying their future.