Cape Town - Three men, believed to have travelled with R1 million worth of mandrax from Gauteng en route to Cape Town, were arrested near Beaufort West.
The trio, Nkosinathi Gamede, 37, Ndumiso Buthelezi, 27 and Blessing Pasi, 34, made an appearance in the Beaufort West Magistrate’s Court today.
The arrests come after an operation by the Hawks in George, which received a tip-off that drugs were being transported via Gauteng to Cape Town.
Zinzi Hani of the Hawks confirmed the trio’s arrest, stating that 33 500 mandrax tablets were found inside the vehicle once the suspect’s car was stopped along the N1 near Beaufort West.
“Three suspects, aged between 27 and 37, were expected to appear before the Beaufort West Magistrates’ Court for dealing in drugs,” said Hani.
“The trio was arrested in an intelligence-driven operation along the N1 road near Beaufort West after 33 500 mandrax tablets estimated to be worth more than R1 million were uncovered in their vehicle.
“This followed a tip-off received about narcotics reportedly being transported from Gauteng to Cape Town.
“The team led by the George-based Hawks’ Serious Organised Crime Investigation accompanied by the Beaufort West K9 unit nabbed the suspects on Sunday evening after working tirelessly to gather the information regarding the identified suspects and a white truck that was intercepted.”
Hani added the case was postponed to September 27 for the suspect’s bail information.
The suspects remain behind bars.
Weekend Argus