Western cape: Persistent efforts by members of Operation Shanela II and Public Order Police have delivered significant breakthroughs in the fight against drugs and illegal firearms in the Western Cape, with several arrests and key confiscations made in recent days.
According to South African Government News Agency, police operations in Delft, Elsies River, Saldanha, and Mitchells Plain led to the recovery of narcotics worth thousands of rands, the seizure of a prohibited firearm, and the arrest of multiple suspects linked to drug dealing and illegal possession.
In Delft, officers acted on intelligence about dagga being stored at the Freedom Farm informal settlement. A search led to the discovery of four large bags of dagga concealed in a bin. With no suspects present, the drugs were booked in at Delft SAPS as abandoned.
In Elsies River, two men were arrested on Monday. A 43-year-old was caught with 19 sachets of tik and cash believed to be drug proceeds during a stop-and-search on Bestenbier Avenue. Later that day, a 27-year-old was arrested at a premises in Noorwood, where police found 40 mandrax tablets, four dagga rolls, and R140 in cash.
In Saldanha, Vredenburg Public Order Policing members acted on information about drug dealing at a house in White City. A 58-year-old suspect was arrested after officers uncovered tik, mandrax, cocaine, and ecstasy with an estimated street value of R30,000, along with cash.
Meanwhile, in Mitchells Plain, Public Order Police arrested a man in Banhoek Street, Tafelsig, after he was found with a 9mm firearm with its serial number removed and six rounds of ammunition. The suspect was unable to produce a firearm licence and now faces charges of possession of a prohibited firearm and ammunition.
All suspects are expected to appear in the Goodwood, Vredenburg, and Mitchells Plain Magistrates’ Courts once charged.