POCA: 3 cars found with dagga to be auctioned
MBABANE – Three cars that were found loaded with 930.6kg of dagga at one Celani Dlamini’s homestead at KaNcesi will be sold through private or public auction.
This comes after the High Court delivered a judgment authorising the State to sell the three top-of-the-range cars.
The Crown had moved an application to forfeit the motor vehicles in terms of the Prevention of Organised Crime Act (POCA), 2018, which was, however, being opposed by the owners.
The motor vehicles are a Toyota Hilux Dakar registered JN 21 ZW GP, a Jeep Cherokee registered KS 34 WW GP and a Ford Ranger with the registration number KY 56 RF GP.
In his judgment, Judge Sabelo Masuku found that the prosecution was able to prove that the motor vehicles were used as instrumentality for illegal activities.
“The evidence shows that the loading and transportation of large quantities of dagga from Eswatini to South Africa was not an isolated event and had been repeated throughout the period of surveillance,” said the court.
Reason
Judge Masuku said he was compelled to conclude that the owners of the cars acquired and maintained them for no apparent reason, other than to carry out the illegal enterprise of transporting dagga from Eswatini to South Africa. It was further the court’s conclusion that the Crown managed to prove on a balance of probabilities that the vehicles were instrumentality of an offence under POCA.
The court also ordered the owners to pay costs of the matter. The vehicles, according to Crown Counsel Mxolisi Dlamini, were found loaded with dagga consignments of different sizes and weights.
The total street value of the dagga found in the three vehicles was E744 000. Some of the vehicles, according to investigators, were owned by South Africans.
As a result, the State cited Retishe Pty (Ltd) and Zungu Jeanette as respondents, along with Celani.
Mxolisi told the court that information in their possession was to the effect that the motor vehicles were used as an instrumentality to smuggle dagga from Eswatini to South Africa.
Information
He informed the court that in September last year, Assistant Superintendent Isaac Dlamini received information that certain motor vehicles were exiting Eswatini through Ngwenya Border Gate, without checking out with immigration and customs officials. This information, according to Mxolisi, was shared with police officers who were on duty at the border gate. He submitted that investigations revealed that the motor vehicles were part of a syndicate that smuggled dagga.
“On October 12, 2022, during the day, a motor vehicle registered YSD 964 BM crossed through Oshoek/Ngwenya Border Gate without checking out through the immigration and customs officials. They did not stop at the exit point for a routine search,” said the Crown counsel.
He also informed the court that on November 25, 2022, the motor vehicle crossed the border gate on several occasions in the same manner.
The vehicles, according to Mxolisi, usually sped through the exit point without stopping or waiting for the police to search it. He said it ended up being stopped by the South African police.
“When the vehicle was finally searched, dagga weighing 497 kilogrammes was discovered. The driver, Kwanele Maphosa, was arrested and charged with possessing the dagga.
“Investigations continued and eventually uncovered that the syndicate had changed its mode of transport. One of the vehicles registered HS 03 GB GP was driven by Samukeliso Vilakati of Maphalalaleni area.
“The other cars were KY 56 RF GP and DS 47 FT GP (white Ford Rangers branded with green stickers written ‘Open Serve’. Photos of the vehicles with stickers laden with dagga are shown in photos of a photo album by 1238 D/ Constable Sinakekelo Sambo.”
Further investigations, said Mxolisi, unearthed that one Celani of KaNcesi crossed to South Africa driving a Jeep Cherokee registered KS 34 WW GP.
Sometimes the motor vehicle also bore the registration number, BB 14 YK GP or YSD 964 BH. This is the vehicle that was allegedly found loaded with dagga on November 25, 2022, and it was driven by Maphosa.
Mxolisi informed the court that on February 21, 2023, at about 3:30am, information was received by the police that the two motor vehicles, white Ford Rangers registered KY 56 RF GP and DS 47 FT GP, bearing ‘Open Serve’ stickers on their body were on their way to Ngwenya Border Gate from KaNcesi carrying a consignment of dagga.
“This information was shared by Assistant Superintendent Isaac Dlamini with the officers on duty at the border.
It appears that someone alerted the drivers of the said Ford Rangers that police were trailing them as they decided to turn back before reaching the border and vanished into thin air.
“However, it was later shared that the same vehicles eventually passed through the border without checking out with immigration and customs officials. Information gathered, as shown by CCTV footage sourced from the border, the vehicles crossed at high speed into the republic of South Africa,” said the prosecutor.
He submitted that this month, the police received further information to the effect that three vehicles, KY 56 RF GP (Ford Ranger), DS 47 FT GP and JN 21 ZW GP (Toyota Hilux) were, at KaNcesi area, loaded with dagga ready to be transported out of the country to South Africa.
Homestead
A team of detectives, said Mxolisi, proceeded to KaNcesi to Celani’s homestead, where they conducted a search after introducing themselves as police officers to him and his wife.
“Upon the search, a lot of dagga was found inside the first respondent’s (Celani) house. Police decided to also conduct a search of the vehicles which were parked in the yard. They discovered five big bags of dagga in a Grey Toyota Hilux registered JN 21 ZW GP.
“They found 13 blocks of dagga in a Jeep Cherokee registered RS 34 WW GP. A total of 37 bags of dagga were found in the white Ford Ranger registered KY 56 RF GP. The dagga weighed a total of 930.6 kg. Police seized the vehicles and the dagga.
Celani and his wife, Sebenzile, were charged with being in unlawful possession of dagga. The prosecution was represented by Melusi Lukhele from the chamber of the director of public prosecutions (DPP) while for the respondents was Sipho Gumedze.