R5m drug bust at Lebombo Border Post
The powder was tested and found to be positive as a narcotics substance.
On Wednesday December 7, SARS customs officers seized a substance at the Lebombo Border Post that is used to manufacture the drug Mandrax after inspecting a truck entering South Africa from Mozambique.
Customs inspectors from the Lebombo Customs Detector Dog Unit (DDU) were conducting random searches of cargo when they stopped a yellow truck with two trailers en route to South Africa.
The officers engaged the driver, a Zimbabwean citizen, to perform a manual inspection to verify the declared goods, which were declared as boxes of hair extensions. A customs officer requested the declaration documents from the driver, which were handed over to the officer.
The seal numbers were verified and found to be correct, and the inspector continued with his search of the rest of the vehicle. A toolbox was opened, and nine bags of an unknown powder weighing 22kg were found. The powder was tested on-site using a generic and cocaine test kit and .
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The goods and the vehicle were handed over to the SAPS for further investigation. The SAPS’s forensic laboratory later confirmed that the substance was N-acetylanthralinic acid, which is the precursor in the synthesis of methaqualone (Mandrax) manufacturing.
The estimated value of the substance is approximately R5m. However, once this power is used to manufacture Mandrax tablets, the drug would have a hugely higher value. The truck driver fled the scene during the inspection. The vehicle was detained in the SARS state warehouse.
In a separate incident at the Skilpadshek Border Post with Botswana, a SARS customs officer randomly intercepted a South African registered truck carrying 1 433 master cases of undeclared, suspectedly illicit Remington Gold cigarettes.
The contents of the truck were declared as wastepaper to the value of R48 500. During the inspection, the customs officer found that the wastepaper was used to cover the master cases of cigarettes, valued at an estimated R21m.
The truck driver pretended to be opening the other side of the truck and fled the inspection area. The truck and master cases of cigarettes were detained at the Skilpadshek Border Post. A criminal case against the driver, clearing agent and transport company is under way.
SARS’s commissioner, Edward Kieswetter, praised the customs officers and the DDU for their vigilance in preventing illicit cigarettes entering the country.
“The legal tobacco and cigarette industry in the country needs to be supported, and SARS has shown once again that it is playing its part. Similarly, the trade in narcotics needs to be smashed. These drugs have a harmful effect on all users, which unfortunately includes young persons who have the potential to contribute greatly to the prosperity of our country.”
