Cops, Dept of Health employee in court for transporting dagga
Two police officers and a Department of Health driver and his friend were arrested for possession of dagga in two separate incidents last week.
KAMHLUSHWA – A sergeant and constable of the local police station were arrested on Friday around 17:20, after they were found transporting three large bags of dagga.
According to provincial police spokesman, Brig Leonard Hlathi, a team of Crime Intelligence and Tactical Response Team members received information on the duo’s suspected criminal activities and tracked them down. They were travelling in a private vehicle, and one was on duty while the other was not.
After finding the bags of dagga, they were arrested on a charge of dealing in the drug. They are scheduled to appear in the Tonga Magistrate’s Court today.
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Two other men appeared in court last week on charges relating to dagga.
David Nkosi, a 49-year-old driver for the Department of Health and the 42-year-old Foster Zulu, were arrested for possession of dagga near Schoemansdal last Monday around 02:30.
Police found bags of compressed and wrapped bags of dagga weighing 5,9 kilograms in the state vehicle, belonging to Shongwe Hospital, that they were driving.
The duo appeared in the Boschfontein Periodical Court on charges of possession of dagga on Tuesday. Nkosi was released on a warning and Zulu was granted R500 bail. They are scheduled to appear in the same court on May 30.
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Provincial SAPS commissioner Lt Gen Mondli Zuma expressed his dismay at the fact that police were involved in dagga-related crimes, especially in the Tonga Cluster.
“There is no space for such criminal elements in the SAPS in particular and the government in general. These arrests should serve as a stern warning to other civil servants currently involved in similar activities that their days are numbered because the net is closing on them”, he said.
Community members are reminded that it is illegal to transport, sell or use dagga outside your own home.
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