The Union

Tik bust at Cape Town Airport

A 19-year-old Malaysian woman travelling with 1.2kg of tik was arrested at Cape Town International Airport, Western Cape police said on Sunday.

She was arrested while checking in with an airline on Saturday, said Superintendent Andre Traut.

"Her suitcase was equipped with a false compartment, containing 1.2kg tik with a street value to the tune of R360 000."

She was arrested and expected to appear in court on Monday. The woman was one of four people caught for drug possession over the weekend.

On Sunday, police arrested an Ethiopian man at a bus stop in Bellville, Cape Town after searching his belongings. The 24-year-old man was allegedly found with 132 khat plants with a street value of R10 000.

In another case, two South African men, aged 26 and 32, were arrested on Sunday for possession of 129 cartons of Mega cigarettes which had been illegally imported to avoid tobacco taxes.

They would appear in the Bellville Magistrate's Court on Monday. (from News24)

Drug raid at Senator Park goes bad.

Police had to call for back-up to get out of a block of flats in the city centre after a crowd of about 140 residents stopped them from leaving.

During the stand-off on Wednesday at Senator Park, residents allegedly threw stones at police officers, causing what police estimate to be about R30 000 worth of damage to two cars.

The City of Cape Town says that almost weekly drug raids are conducted at Senator Park, and that metro police had gathered statistics of how many and what kind of drugs are seized there.

In the past three months, mayoral committee member for safety and security JP Smith said, 199 tik lollies, 60 units of tik, 101 units of rocks, 16 units of heroin, 92 parcels of dagga and dagga cigarettes, 24 parcels of cocaine, five crack rocks and seven units of unga (heroin mix) had been seized in 10 raids.

Smith said today that these seizures were enough to warrant ongoing raids at Senator Park. (We've found it here before so we're going to find it again! Great logic from Cape Town's number 1 nazi. No need to consider what it's like for the law abiding residents who are having to live through this each time? Do these folks really have no rights? What you're seeing here are the Metro cops acting outside the law. There is no warrant that covers all the apartments in the whole of Senator Park.)

During yesterday's raid, a 19-year-old man fell off a balcony, landed on a first floor window ledge, and was injured. Police claim that this happened when the young man jumped through a kitchen window after scuffling with police, while the man's girlfriend insists he was pushed by officers. (the story according the Voice)

The ambulance took the man to hospital after his fall and he has been charged with possession of drugs as well as escape from lawful custody. He is currently under police guard in hospital
(from IOL)

Metro police on drug rampage

Cape Town Metro Police's Operation Choke swung into action at the weekend, raiding homes on Friday night, arresting 27 people, issuing more than 250 fines, and seizing tik, Mandrax, dagga and heroin. (from IOL)

The goal is to stem the flow of drugs around the Peninsula by repeatedly raiding drug dens.

Drugs are considered the fuel that feeds the violence among gangs on the Cape Flats.

A Weekend Argus team accompanied Metro Police who raided five homes, four flats in Athlone and a house in Hanover Park.

Metro Police chief Robert Young has vowed to continue with Operation Choke, saying only ongoing raids can stem the flow of drugs.

"It's also about keeping drugs out of the areas where they're sold. We're focusing on roadblocks too. You see, he who controls the roads controls the drugs."

The raid ended about midnight. Asked if every night was as eventful, a sergeant said: "This? This is f*** all. We've had it easy."

Cops in on the cannabis trade.

The Minister of Police's answer to the questions of the Reverend K R J Meshoe (ACDP) reveal the police are in on the cannabis game.

The Reverend asked (inter alia)

(1)(a) What quantity of drugs have been stolen from store rooms in police stations in each of the past five years up to the latest specified date for which information is available and (b) how many people were (i) found to be responsible and (ii) arrested in this regard;

(...and (b) how many (i) arrests and (ii) successful convictions were obtained in each case?

and the Minister relied thus:

(1)(a) Drugs stolen from store rooms in police stations
2005: 30 kilograms 040 grams cannabis,
2006: Nil
2007: 1 000 kilograms 280 grams cannabis; 43,5 tablets methaqualone (mandrax)
2008: 496 kilograms 224 grams cannabis; 123 kilograms 267 grams cocaine
2009:(1 January 2009 to 31 August 2009): 1 182 kilograms 123 grams cannabis; 824 grams cocaine; 65 008 tablets methaqualone (mandrax); 137 grams methamphetamine

...(2)(b)(i) 21 arrests

(2)(b)(ii) A total of three (3) successful convictions obtained. The other cases are still under investigation.

Issued by: South African Police Service - 7 October 2009

So a ton of cannabis is stolen by the police from the police storage per annum for sale and consumtion. Only three convictions obtained from 21 arrests for doing this? What is going on here? Sure South Africa produces 3000 tons per annum, but how come the cops have a get out of jail free card?

Four more arrested in war on cannabis

Four people have been arrested in dagga busts worth R25 000 in Delft, Cape Town police said on Thursday.

Captain Joe Wilson said the police searched a person in Kunene Street in Delft on Wednesday morning and found a parcel of dagga on him.

Further investigations led the police to two premises in the same street where dagga was stored and sold.

"On their arrival at one of these houses they found 153 parcels of dagga with a total weight of 20kg, openly displayed on the dining room table," said Wilson.

Later in the day, the police followed up on information from the public and recovered 12kg worth of dagga from a shack at Freedom Farm informal settlement.

The police arrested three men and an 18-year-old woman during the raids.

"The total weight for both busts is 32kg with a street value of R25 000. The suspects, aged 18, 25, 25 and 33, face charges of illegal possession of dagga and will appear in Bellville Magistrate's Court (soon)," said Wilson. (from News24)

READ: 4 more people have their lives ruined by nonsense prohibitionist policy.

DEATH FROM ABOVE: The hidden costs of cannabis prohibition

The cultivation of cannabis is illegal in South Africa. The South African Police in the course of their duties come find large areas of under cultivation in rural areas. The policy is one of cutting down small plantations and large plantations are sprayed with Roundup from the air.

In 2001 South Africa were kind enough to spray 108 hectares in the Royal Kingdom of Swaziland. (SAPS Statement) What good neighbours we are?!

In 2004 the US DEA donated a sixth Squirrel helicopter to the SAP taking the number of helicopters for spraying to 26 (SAPS Journal)


In 2005 "±170,5 hectares of cannabis fields, estimated at ± R119 300 million, were sprayed in the Eastern Cape." (SAPS Report) That would be right.. ±the area, ±the value...

"Police have destroyed dagga plantations worth almost R200-million..... In two weeks time, the dagga - grown in an area the size of 500 rugby fields - would have gone on sale.....Every year, farmers plant hundreds of hectares of cannabis, and every year police helicopters descend on the valleys to spray them with poison. Police are determined to cut the supply of the popular drug, which constitutes about 80% of all local drug-related cases. This is the third operation to take place this year (2006) - and two more are scheduled before the end of the year. In the latest mission, more than 260 hectares of dagga was sprayed and killed, and a further 4 tons of harvested cannabis was seized by ground troops." (SAP)

In the crime year 2007/8 the South African Police reported "1754,5 hectares cannabis fields sprayed in cannabis spray operations." (p.81 SAP Annual Report)

Year by year the numbers went 170 hectares, 260 hectares, 1745 hectares. Where will this stop?

The 2008/2009 SAP Annual Report states that 1275 hectares were sprayed in four operations in the year under review.

Dr Johan Minnaar of Groblerdal produced evidence of serious illnesses and disorders among his patients, where commercial farmers are spraying large amounts of agrochemicals on crops. Horrific cases include breasts on a five year old girl, teenage boys temporarily "growing breasts" during spraying seasons, miscarriages, partial facial paralysis, cancers and ear malfunctions. Milder poisoning symptoms, include asthma, sinusitis, headaches, dizziness and depression. (from Environment)

This led Professor Leslie London of the University of Cape Town to state: "premature puberty and other hormonal abnormalities are symptoms of contamination by pesticides containing endocrine disruptors. I think there is a view that if you choose to live in the country, you should accept this as a way of life."

The spokesperson in charge of these operations confirmed that the Roundup pamphlet informed him "that Roundup is as safe as table salt".

It's either sell drugs or starve: Cape moms

A group of Cape Flats women admit to selling drugs, but say they only do it to put food on the table.

They also claim their neighbours don't mind.

The family at Kapokblom Street in Lentegeur spoke out after cops raided their house for the umpteenth time last week.

Now they say they want to tell their side of the story.

Loretta Solomons, 39, says her brother-in-law Alfred Martin, who was arrested, has been selling ungah (heroin) from a Wendy house on her property for the past year.

"My husband used to sell ungah as well but I didn't approve of it so I framed him by showing police where he hid the stuff," says Loretta.

"At first I didn't know that he [Alfred] was selling drugs from here but I had a suspicion because there were always people coming here."

At first Loretta says she tried to stop Alfred, 40, but he refused.

"I was unhappy about the fact that he was selling drugs because I didn't want to put my children's lives at risk. I have a four-month-old baby and anything can happen to my family," she says.

But when times got tough, Loretta says she welcomed the drug money.

"He [Alfred] lost his job at a butchery in Hanover Park and we were struggling," she says.
"Most times we'd go to sleep with no food in the house and I also started selling drugs just to put food on the table - but we never sold tik."

But while Loretta gave up her drug business, she says Alfred has continued selling from the house he shares with his wife Jennifer Martin, 41, and one of their three kids.

Jennifer says she doesn't condone what her husband is doing but says without the money, her family would have nothing to eat.

"I don't support what he's doing, it's wrong but I tried to stop him and he won't," she says.

"We also don't have any other source of income and the money puts food on the table."

Jennifer says besides her three kids with Alfred, he also has other mouths to feed.

"Hy't 'n klomp los kinders wie hy na omsien en hy werk nie [He has lots of illegitimate kids he has to take care of and he doesn't work]," she says.

Both women admit that the money Alfred makes from selling drugs has helped keep both households running and say they are sick and tired of the constant police interference.

Jennifer says cops constantly raid their house.

"They come here without a search warrant, breaking off our doors and scaring our kids in the middle of the night," she complains.

"They've broken our ceiling, our door handles and our burglar gate."

Jennifer says cops even threatened her when they didn't find drugs on the property.

"If I knew where my husband hid his things, I'd show them because I don't agree with what he's doing," she says.

"But when I tell the police that I don't know where the drugs are, they never believe me."

Surprisingly, their neighbours don't mind that the family are running a drug den from the property.

Louise Petersen, 47, a former counsellor at Pollsmoor prison says the family is only trying to survive like everyone else on the Cape Flats.

"They're not bothering anyone so I don't mind that they sell drugs," she says.

"My children are all grown-up and none of them are on drugs.

"The police are always unruly when they come here, while these people are willing to cooperate with them."

Elisia Arendse, 31, who lives opposite the drug house, says Loretta and her family are "very nice people".

"They are nice and don't bother anyone, they also cause no trouble in the road so I don't mind," she says.

Mitchell's Plain police spokesperson Ian Williams says Alfred will appear in court on Monday.

"He was arrested and charged with possession of drugs and will be appearing in court," Williams says.

- Daily Voice

I sell weed for my mom, says girl

The Cape Flats' youngest drug dealer says she is peddling weed for her mother.

The 12-year-old girl appeared in court on Monday after she was caught by police with 81 dagga parcels hidden under her clothes on Friday night.

The girl spent the weekend in a place of safety, waiting to appear in the Athlone Magistrates' Court.

The child from Bhekela in Philippi-East told cops she sells dagga for her mother who is in the Eastern Cape.

Police spokesperson Warrant Officer Nondumiso Paul says the allegations are being looked into.

"We are investigating if that is true. The mother has not yet been informed about the arrest," she says.

Police nabbed the girl, who looks after her three siblings aged between nine and 14, after a tip-off from the community.

Cops became suspicious of the girl while she was standing against a wall as they were searching the room. - Daily Voice

Drug addicts using public libraries

A man who allegedly flashed a woman in a public library says he's innocent. (from IOL)

An embarrassed Moegamat Taurick Solomons, 34, contacted the Daily Voice on Friday after seeing his face splashed on the front page.

The Plumstead father of two says he had no idea his penis was on show and that the whole incident was simply a misunderstanding.

In a telephonic interview, Solomons admitted being high on Mandrax and tik but said he had simply forgot to zip up after going to the loo.
"I was on tik and mandrax that day," he says.

"I came across the library in a residential area and I spoke to the lady about how much it would cost to become a member.

"She told me it was R180."

According to court papers, Solomons went to the library where the 39-year-old woman works.
The librarian claims Solomons showed her his penis when she went to assist him.

But Solomons says he was innocently browsing religious books on Islam and Christianity when the woman kicked up a fuss and claimed he had flashed his penis.

"I was reading a book about Islam and Christianity and went to the toilet," he said.
"When I came back I was unaware that my zipper was down.

"I went back to my seat and stood up again and asked her a few questions... this was probably when the misunderstanding occurred."

Solomons said soon thereafter, he was politely asked to leave the library by a group of men.
"I didn't know why they asked me to go," he says.

Solomons said moments after that, police picked him up while he was strolling down Main Road, Wynberg.

Six-year-olds 'using tik'

Fourteen pupils at a primary school in Faure, some as young as six, have been identified as drug and alcohol users by education authorities.

The Cape Argus visited the school earlier this month after teachers raised concerns that pupils were smoking tik and dagga and drinking alcohol before class.

The teachers said the children's erratic behaviour and mood swings were making it increasingly difficult to deal with them.

The Western Cape Education Department has been in talks with its Safer Schools programme, as well as the school social worker, to decide on what needs to be done to address this problem.

An initial assessment by a social worker identified nine children who may be at risk.

The spokeswoman for Education MEC Donald Grant, Bronagh Casey, said the school was still being evaluated.

"We have made a preliminary assessment of the learners originally reported to the (department).

"A second group of learners have been identified since then. There are now 14 learners who are believed to be at risk. They are between the ages of six and 12 years," said Casey.

She said officials had met the pupils' parents.

At a meeting last week it was decided that "an intervention strategy" would focus on the pupils and their parents and include home visit, said Casey.

A teacher at the school said there were "clear signs" that the drug and alcohol problems started at home.

"It's fine to work with the kids, but you need to work with the parents as well," said the teacher.

Casey said: "The South African National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence (Sanca), Child Welfare and the police will also be involved."

She said police were investigating from whom the pupils bought drugs.

The principal, who has been in the post for 12 years, had earlier told the Cape Argus that her staff had repeatedly summoned parents to discuss their children's drug use, but "most of the parents (of these children) also (use drugs)".

- Cape Argus

'He had chains round his neck'

She knew he was a thieving druggie but identifying her grandson's corpse was the hardest thing this grandmother has ever had to do.

The teen's lifeless body was dumped on Monwabisi beach after he was allegedly abducted and killed for stealing in his area.

The lonely stretch of beach is a notorious dumping spot for corpses and cops regularly patrol the shore.

Harare police spokeswoman Nosiphiwo Mtengwane says a case of murder has been opened for Monde Malgas' murder and one suspect is already in custody.

"One suspect was arrested on charges of kidnapping and murder," says Mtengwane.

Monde's grandmother Miriam Malgas, 56, says a man came to their house in Makhaya, Khayelitsha, to look for Monde, 16, last week but the teen wasn't at home.

"He told me that a lady who lives in the area sent him to tell us Monde had stolen a DVD player and an amplifier from her house," she says.

The teen's devastated family admit he was a drug addict and had been involved in crime before.

Miriam says the most painful thing about losing her grandson is the fact that he was starting to mend his ways.

"He [Monde] did a lot of things wrong, but he was starting to change because he had even started going to church," she says.

The family says Monde was tortured by being strangled with a chain before he was eventually murdered and dumped on the beach on Thursday.

The teen's mother Linda Malgas, 35, says they aren't sure what exactly Monde died of.

"The woman denies sending someone to our house," says Linda.

"Witnesses say Monde was picked up and put in a car by three men and he had chains round his neck."

Linda says her son couldn't even explain himself because the chains were choking him.

Last year Niezaam Abrahams' burnt body and car were found at Monwabisi beach.

He had to be identified by his gold teeth.

- Daily Voice

Cop accuses boss of smoking dagga

A traffic officer has claimed his boss is a foul-mouthed and dagga-smoking bully.

The Cape Town cop admits he smoked dagga during a departmental function just so that he could curry favour with his superior.

But now the officer has come clean to the Daily Voice and wants to expose the drug abuse in an offical enquiry.

In a statement the officer, who works at the Hillstar Traffic Department, says his boss - whose
identity is known to the Daily Voice - is called "The Daggakop Skollie" (The Pothead Gangster) by colleagues.

The statement reads: "While at Langebaan last year in November, we were four traffic officers and two chief inspectors and I then noticed the Inspector preparing two 10cm long dagga cigarettes.

"The zol was passed around amongst us and out of the six officers, five smoked."

He says he felt pressured to go on on the trip and feared victimisation if he didn't.

"Initially I didn't want to go on this trip but the chief inspector warned us that if we didn't go 'we won't be in his plans'," says the officer.

"I was scared he would relocate me or victimise me like he had done with other officers.

"I regret that I participated in smoking dagga. I wanted to fit in and I needed the protection."

The officer says he will only reveal his identity at an official enquiry.

He also claims his superior uses profanity in meetings.

City Safety and Security Executive Director Richard Bosman confirms the matter is being investigated.

"We are treating the case seriously and if there is evidence that will prove misconduct, action in the form of a hearing will be taken against all the parties involved," he says. - Daily Mail

Police lose drugs and fail to stop "dealing"

The police's failure to protect samples and confiscated material stored at its forensics science laboratory in Pretoria had resulted in the theft of drugs worth an estimated R50m on the street, the DA said on Wednesday. (from News24))

MEMBERS of the police and the legal fraternity are up in arms because prominent drug dealers are walking free out of the courts. Magistrates in the regional and district courts are at loggerheads with each other due to this situation. (from the Paarl Post)

District Court Magistrates refuse to hear matters relating to drug dealers, as they are of the opinion that certain sections of the law do not give them the necessary jurisdiction to do so. The Chief Magistrate in Cape Town has advised the District Magistrates that it is possible for them to hear evidence and pass stringent sentences in these matters, however the magistrates still refuse to do so.

Instead they refer these cases to the Regional Court, where here too magistrates refuse to fill up their already backlogged case loads, maintaining that the District Court Magistrates can settle these matters.

A magistrate recently refused to hear the case of three prominent drug dealers who were found with drugs worth R96 000 in their possession.

The accused were prepared to plead guilty, but the magistrate instead transferred the matter to the Regional Court and the matter has now been postponed

And on 27 January, when an accused wanted to plead guilty after having been arrested with 96 kilograms of dagga in his possession, the District Magistrate again instructed that the case be transferred to the Regional Court.

These cases are often struck from the roll and drug dealers are then free to get back to business.

Drugs continue to flow into Cape Town...

A woman suspected of being a drug mule has been arrested for allegedly carrying drugs valued at about R1.6 million at the Cape Town International Airport, Western Cape police said on Thursday. (from IOL)

Inspector November Filander said the 26-year-old woman was arrested on Wednesday after a tip-off that she would be flying from Johannesburg to Cape Town in the late afternoon.

On searching her luggage, police found 4.5kg of tik hidden in cereal boxes.

In another incident a man was caught for carrying drugs on a bus.

"Police were tipped off about a 25-year-old Somalian national travelling in a luxury bus from Beaufort West towards Bellville on the N1 freeway," Filander said.

Flying squad police pulled off the bus at a petrol station where they positively identified the man they were looking for and searched his suitcases.

An illegal drug kat, valued at R10 000, was found inside one of the suitcases.

These tip-offs. Who makes them? It's not the caring public... it's the competition!