By Everson Luhanga
- Police found 80kg of cocaine worth R20-million during a late-night raid on a smallholding in Blue Hills, Midrand, on Tuesday.
- The 56-year-old property owner was arrested after police acted on a tip-off that drugs were being stored on the premises.
A 56-year-old man has been arrested after police found cocaine worth R20-million hidden in a storage room on his Midrand plot.
The bust happened on Tuesday night, 28 October, when a specialised police team raided the smallholding in Blue Hills. Officers found 80kg of cocaine during the operation, which was led by national Crime Intelligence.
National police spokesperson Brigadier Athlenda Mathe said the team was acting on a tip-off that drugs were being kept on the property.
“The multidisciplinary team included members of the Gauteng organised crime unit, the Johannesburg K9 unit and the Local Criminal Record Centre,” said Mathe.
She confirmed that the cocaine had been smuggled into South Africa from a neighbouring country and was on its way to Cape Town in the Western Cape.
The drugs were discovered hidden inside a storage room on the property. Police believe the suspect owns the plot.
He was arrested on the scene and is expected to appear in the Midrand Magistrate’s Court later this week on charges of possession and dealing in drugs.
Police say investigations are continuing and more arrests could follow as they track down others linked to the smuggling operation.
The bust forms part of an ongoing national clampdown on drug trafficking networks that use Gauteng as a hub for moving drugs across the country.
Pictured above: Police seized 80kg of cocaine worth R20-million from a Midrand property.
Image source: SAPS
