Suspects busted while transporting R400 million cocaine in truck remanded in custody

The three men who were arrested while transporting R400 million worth of cocaine in a truck in Cape Town last week, have been remanded in custody.

The trio, Ebrahim Kara (39), Meshack Mzungezi Ngobese (47), and Elias Radebe (42) made a brief appearance on Monday in the Athlone Magistrates’ Court for possession of 670kg of cocaine.

They were arrested last Thursday, by the Hawks working together with Crime Intelligence and the Western Cape Traffic Police.

The suspects were nabbed after law enforcement received a tipoff about a truck suspected to be transporting drugs on the N1 freeway.

The truck was intercepted by the Hawks on Jan Smuts Avenue, between Pinelands and Athlone, in Cape Town. Officers found the drugs hidden in false wooden boards at the back of the truck.

During their court appearance on Monday, the case was postponed to 15 August 2022.

This was in order for police to confirm their personal details, such as their home addresses, ahead of the bail hearing.

Police Minister Bheki Cele also attended Monday’s court proceedings.

The minister commended Western Cape police for arrests. He said subsequent to the suspects’ arrests, police also found more than 40 000 mandrax tablets.

“What brought us [here] today was to put some good news on the police.

“Western Cape police and law enforcement have been doing quite a good job in terms of prevention and crime intelligence working together with the Hawks,” Cele said.

In a separate case, on 5 July 2022, a 37-year-old man was arrested and drugs worth R12 million were seized along the N12 in Springs, Gauteng.

In another case, police arrested two suspects after they were found to be in possession of 2kg of crystal meth and 300g of heroin worth approximately R1 million at the OR Tambo International Airport, on 22 July 2022.