Pretoria – A 71-year-old man is set to appear before a magistrate on Monday to answer charges of possession of drugs.
Police spokesperson in Mpumalanga, Brigadier Selvy Mohlala said the septuagenarian was nabbed after police officers acted on information provided by community members regarding the sale of drugs at a house in Mhluzi.
“Police were patrolling in the area at Extension 08 after they received information that drugs were sold at a certain house. Police visited the house and conducted a search at the premises where they made a discovery of 15 pitches of brownish powder believed to be nyaope,” said Mohlala.
The suspect was then arrested and the recovered substance was confiscated for further investigation.
“Meanwhile, the suspect is expected to appear at the Emalahleni Magistrate's Court on Monday, September 12, 2022 facing the said charges,” he said.
Provincial commissioner of SAPS in Mpumalanga, Lieutenant General Semakaleng Daphney Manamela has raised a concern regarding elderly people “who are expected to give directions to young people in the communities rather than be the ones who are found to be in conflict with the law”.
Manamela saluted members of the community who provided the information to the police.
In May, the Nkomazi Magistrate’s Court struck off the roll a case of an 82-year-old woman who was arrested for allegedly smuggling dagga near the eSwatini border with South Africa.
Before the octogenarian appeared in court, Mohlala said the woman had been arrested by police officers who were patrolling the area.
“According to the information at police disposal, members at Tonga were busy with their duties of patrolling in the morning at Magudu in Nkomazi, near the borderline between the Kingdom of eSwatini and South Africa, when they spotted a minibus with some commuters.
“It was then that the old woman was allegedly found wrapped with dagga around her body. The dagga seized from her was weighing at 3.88 kgs and estimated at the street value of almost R6 000. She was subsequently arrested and charged for dealing in dagga, hence her court appearance today,” said Mohlala at the time.
“Preliminary investigation by the police has since revealed that the old woman was allegedly on a trip of trafficking the dagga to Bushbuckridge when the members intercepted her mission,” he said.
IOL