By Ragheema Mclean
A 29-year-old South African woman was arrested in Ethiopia on Saturday (12 October) after being caught with drugs worth R5.4 million. The drugs, intended for South Africa, were reportedly sourced from Brazil.
Gauteng police flagged the woman through Interpol South Africa, suspecting she had been traveling through multiple countries to smuggle the narcotics.
This arrest comes amid a series of drug trafficking cases, with 14 drug mules apprehended at OR Tambo International Airport in recent weeks.
Speaking on VOC Breakfast, crime expert Guy Lamb said there are several challenges in detecting drug trafficking and the fluctuating trends in related crimes.
“It’s difficult to measure accurately because drug-related crime rates depend on multiple factors, including law enforcement priorities. In the Western Cape, for example, we’ve seen arrests rise from about 63,000 in 2019-2020 to over 72,000 in recent years,” he said.
He noted that while South African police have intensified efforts to combat drug trafficking, there has been a notable increase in drug-related arrests.
Listen to the full interview below:
VOC News
Photo: Supplied
