R9 million drugs seized on N4 highway, suspect is parolee
Inside the boot they found mandrax stuffed in 10 plastic bags
This weekend R9 million worth of drugs less were available on the streets.
This is due to the swift response from Witbank Highway Patrol Flying Squad who saw a suspicious-looking car on the N4 on March 4 and made the call to stop and search the car.
Inside the boot they found mandrax stuffed in 10 plastic bags.
A 52-year-old Themba Mbatha, admitted to transporting the drugs from Mozambique to Gauteng.
“During the investigation, it was further established that the suspect was a parolee. He was previously arrested in 1997 for various cases including, robbery aggravating during a cash-in-transit, murder, two counts of attempted murder as well as possession of a firearm without a license and ammunition for which he was sentenced to life imprisonment by the Pretoria High Court. Mbatha was then released on parole in 2018 and was due to finish his minimum sentence on February 28, 2021,” said Brig Leonard Hlathi, provincial spokesperson.
The Provincial Commissioner of the South African Police Service in Mpumalanga, Lieutenant General Mondli Zuma has welcomed the arrest and also condemned the actions of the suspect.
“It is disappointing for someone who is given a second chance to mend his ways and change his life to revert to a life of crime. I also in the same breath like to commend the sterling work of the police officers who arrested the suspect as this will ensure that we don’t have crime being committed by repeat offenders. Even though cross border crime remains a challenge in the province, the arrest of the suspect is an indication that we are on the right track”, said general Zuma.
Mbatha that appeared in court on March 4 was remanded in custody and will appear again at the Witbank Magistrate’s Court on March 12.
