ELUKWATINI – A 46-year-old Swazi man was sentenced to one year’s imprisonment with a fine option of R18 000 for possession of dagga worth an estimated street value of R25 000.
This comes after Mr Alfred Ndiphethe Vilane told the Eerstehoek Magistrate’s Court that he had taken a lift from five Swazi men who were arrested in connection with possession of dagga.
They were arrested in their red Toyota Corolla during a stop and search conducted by members of Elukwatini police on March 23.
“The driver sped off and police gave chase. Realising that they (suspects) would not get far, they eventually pulled to the side and stopped. It was then that three big bags containing compressed dagga were found in the car. The dagga weighed 23,16kg,” explained Const Peace Mbokane, the local police spokesman. “They confessed to the police that they had smuggled the dagga through illegal access points and intended to take it to Johannesburg where they wanted to sell it,” he continued.
The five suspects, Messrs Alfred Ndiphethe Vilane (46), Frans Mokgokoloshi (42), Scorpion Nkosi (32), Dumisani Vilane (30) and Mfiswa Mliba Tfwala (24), all appeared in the Eerstehoek Magistrate’s Court on March 24 on charges of drug dealing.
The station commander of Elukwatini, Col Jeros Thango, applauded the officers for a job well done. “It is a joy to work with such an inspired and dedicated team. The community can sleep well at night knowing that someone is watching over them,” Thango added.
