LIMPOPO – A 42-year-old foreign national was arrested on Monday morning, 17 August, for smuggling explosives into the country.
Police Spokesperson, Brig Motlafela Mojapelo says the woman was stopped during a routine operation on the N1 between the Beitbridge border post and Musina. “The vehicle was searched and the police found three bags filled with a total of 496 units of explosive blasting cartridges, in the boot,” his statement read.
Mojapelo says preliminary investigations indicate that the items belonged to the woman, who was a passenger in the said vehicle. “Initially she told police that the bags were filled with tins of floor polish, which she was taking to Johannesburg.”
Read more: Woman sentenced for smuggling explosives worth R1,2m
The woman was arrested and is expected to appear in the Musina Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday, 19 August on a charge of possession of explosives.
In February, two woman were arrested in Thohyandou after explosive materials worth R1.2 million destined for Gauteng were found. At the time, the Hawks’ Serious Organised Crime Investigation team received information about two Zimbabwean women who were in possession of explosives.
Two people who matched the descriptions given were spotted at a lodge in Thohoyandou and the team closely monitored their movement. They were arrested just before boarding a bus to Gauteng and were charged with unlawful possession of explosives and contravention of the Immigration Act. They are still awaiting sentencing.
