Durban: The Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation, also known as the Hawks, said an alleged drug smuggler was arrested after he was allegedly caught in possession of 67 bags of dagga with a street value of approximately R1.2 million in northern KwaZulu-Natal.
Hawks spokesperson Colonel Simphiwe Mhlongo said Hawks members from Richards Bay Serious Organised Crime Investigation, working together with Louwsburg Visible Policing, arrested Sechaba Maqhama, 44, for possession of dagga on Sunday.
Mhlongo said members received information about a vehicle that was transporting dagga from Pongola to Vryheid, and the Louwsburg members were alerted.
“The vehicle was intercepted on Road 69. A search was conducted, and police found 67 bags of dagga with a street value of approximately R1.2 million,” he said.
Maqhama was then placed under arrest and charged with possession of dagga, he said.
“The vehicle was seized and will be referred to the Asset Forfeiture Investigation for further handling,” added Mhlongo.
Mhlongo said Maqhama briefly appeared in the Louwsburg Magistrate’s Court on Monday, 9 December 2024, and was remanded in custody.
The case was postponed to December 12, 2024.
Last month, IOL reported that police in Mpumalanga arrested a 49-year-old Lesotho national who was in possession of dagga valued around R260,000 during Operation Shanela.
According to Mpumalanga provincial police spokesperson Brigadier Donald Mdhluli, in the report, the arrest took place on the N4 Road between Middelburg toll gate and Nelson Mandela Drive off-ramp near Witbank after patrolling members of the Middelburg flying squad unit spotted a suspicious white Toyota Hilux double cab bakkie.
“Upon stopping the car, they conducted a search inside the vehicle, and 13 bags of dagga, weighing approximately 259 kilograms, with an estimated street value of +/- R260,000 were discovered,” said Mdhluli.
