A PHOENIX grandmother, who kept a bathroom key hidden in her bra for safe keeping, was arrested during a sting operation on Thursday night when police found a stockpile of drugs and 10 bullets in a black travel bag in her shower cubicle.
Urmilla Ganpath, 60, is alleged to have initially lied to the police, telling them only a tenant had access to the locked bathroom.
But she came clean when she produced the key from within her bra and admitted drugs were kept in the house.
Members of the Hawks, Crime Intelligence and the Public Order Police Task Team found 12 200 straws of heroin (‘sugars’) and about 336 mandrax tablets in a black plastic packet.
They also found seven clear plastic packets with broken pieces of tablets, and 46 foil wrappings containing powder and pieces of tablets suspected to be mandrax.
Ten live rounds of ammunition were also found.
The drugs had a street value of around R400 000.
Gunpath was arrested in front of her son, daughter-in-law and two young grandchildren and charged with possession of drugs.
She appeared in the Verulam Magistrate’s Court on Friday and was granted R50 000 bail.
Prior to her arrest, a man, believed to be the son of a drug kingpin, was seen outside her home, driving off in a black VW Golf.
Police pursued his vehicle until he stopped.
They found about R255 000- in different denomination notes in a bag. It is suspected he dropped off the drugs at Gunpath’s modest double-storey home in Ladygreen Place, Greenbury, and picked up the cash.
The man, in his 20s, was questioned and a statement taken.
He was, however, not arrested as police had not witnessed a transaction between the two.
The cash was seized on suspicion that it was drug money.
A well-placed source, who said police were tipped off about the drug den, said the home was used as a storage and distribution facility and that a witness claimed to have seen the man head into the bathroom, where the drugs were kept, and walk out with a bag.
The source said police did not believe Gunpath was the mastermind behind the home-based operation.
Speaking about the raid, the source said police arrived at the house at around 8pm on Thursday and noticed a black Golf leave.
While some members pursued the vehicle, others remained and approached the homeowner.
The woman, her daughter-in-law and two grandchildren, a girl and a boy, were sitting in the lounge relaxing.
After identifying themselves, the police asked to search Gunpath’s home, which she consented to.
During the search, they noticed that one of the bathrooms in the double-storey home was locked.
She was allegedly questioned about this but said her tenant had the key and only he had access to the bathroom.
When further questioned, she admitted she had the key, removed it from her bra and handed it over to the police.
When they entered, they found a black canvas bag in the shower cubicle and the stockpile of drugs.
The 10 bullets were found in plastic wrapping in a bin.
“When she was initially questioned about the locked bathroom, she came up with the excuse about the key being with the tenant.
“But when she was repeatedly questioned, she said something was inside. She was asked what was inside the bathroom and she then said it was drugs,” said the source.
He added that Gunpath’s daughter-in-law moved around the house with the police, with both children in tow, to witness the search.
The source added that the accused’s son arrived at around 9.30pm and claimed he had no knowledge about the drugs on the property. The tenant, who is in his 50s, also arrived home, apparently intoxicated.
The source said he appeared shocked and, at this stage, was not a suspect.
Soon afterwards the son, his wife, two children and the tenant watched the woman being arrested.
The source added that police did not believe Gunpath was the mastermind behind the home being used as a distribution and storage facility. He said: “She was arrested because she had the key (to the bathroom) and had knowledge about the drugs (kept inside). She was the only one who had control of the room.”
The source declined to comment on the alleged drug kingpin, saying only that the man who was found with the cash was suspected of running the operation for his father.
The Phoenix home had been under surveillance for about three months.
The source said drug syndicates operated with impunity in Phoenix.
“When it comes to drugs being sold, Chatsworth was a more established suburb than Phoenix because the dealers there have been in operation much longer.
“At one stage the drug dealers in Chatsworth monopolised the market, but now the drug dealers in Phoenix have realised this is a lucrative business.
“Police operations will now focus on those drug dealers previously thought untouchable.”
When asked to explain what he meant, he said: “There are some people who believe they are above the law and they are behaving as if they know they cannot be ‘touched’. But the long arm of the law will reach them.”
He encouraged communities to come forward and report drug dens.
When POST visited Gunpath’s neighbourhood on Friday afternoon no one seemed to be at home and neighbours said they were unaware of drug activities.
Sam Pillay of the Chatsworth Anti-Drug Forum said drug dealers often used elderly women to store or hide drugs for them.
“Drug dealers believe the police will not suspect the women because of their age. These women agree to store the drugs because they are desperate and in need of money.
“We have had cases where the women agreed to store the drugs because the dealers promised to pay their water or electricity bills, rent or even buy them groceries.”
Pillay said the drug trade in Phoenix had become as prevalent as in Chatsworth.
“When the drug trade started in Phoenix, law enforcement failed to curb it, and now it has grown. More and more people have seen it as a lucrative business. They are not worried about the risks because the punishment, if caught, is not severe.”
He said Phoenix needed more police and community involvement to eradicate the problem.
Police spokesman Major Thulani Zwane confirmed the incident.
He said the only way to eradicate the drug scourge, which was just as bad as in Chatsworth, was to clamp down on dens.
The KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Commissioner, Lieutenant General Betty Mmamonnye Ngobeni, said she hoped the suspect would be prosecuted and brought to book.