Pretoria, 18 February 2017 – 271kg of cocaine worth R78 million confiscated at ORTIA
SARS Customs officials earlier today confiscated 271kg of cocaine with an estimated street value of R78 million at the Oliver Tambo International Airport. It marks the biggest ever cocaine bust by Customs officials in South Africa.
The narcotics, en route from Sao Paulo to Nairobi, Kenya, were found in a cargo warehouse during routine operations. The specific shipment indicated as “cosmetics” on official documentation, was identified for closer inspection through Customs profiling techniques.
A physical inspection was conducted after narcotic detector dogs reacted positively to the cargo. Officials found hair products packed in boxes. A drug test on a number of randomly selected containers all gave an immediate positive reaction to Cocaine.
The 271 kg Cocaine is valued at R78 million and was handed over to the Police for further investigation.
