PORT Shepstone police have arrested two men for being in possession of an East African drug known as khat.
This is believed to be the first find of this particular drug on the South Coast.
Two men, aged 38 and 29 and both from an East African country, were arrested in the lower Albersville area this morning (Tuesday, August 15).
Police spokesman, Lieutenant-Colonel Wiid from the Ugu cluster office, Warrant Officer Johan Terreblanche from the Port Shepstone K9 unit and officers from Port Shepstone Crime Intelligence section were investigating another matter when they saw a silver car with ND registration plates crossing the Batstone’s Drift low level bridge.
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“The two men in the vehicle appeared suspicious and the vehicle was stopped. Police searched the vehicle and found three plastic bags containing the bundles of khat,” said Lt-Col Wiid.
Police confiscated 104 bundles of the drug, each containing 106 stems.
According to Wikipedia, khat is originally from East Africa and contains two stimulants, cathinone and cathine. The plant is normally chewed or smoked.
Catha edulis, from which khat is derived, is a flowering plant native to the horn of Africa and the Arabian Peninsula. It is used as a stimulant and it is a controlled substance in many countries.
Khat contains the alkaloid cathinone, an amphetamine-like stimulant, which is said to cause excitement, loss of appetite, and euphoria.
In 1980, the World Health Organization (WHO) classified it as a drug of abuse that can produce psychological dependence.
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