Police in Potchefstroom formed a team in October 2024 to stop suspects moving large loads of dagga between Gauteng and North West provinces, and on 9 December the team, joined by a private security company, intercepted two Toyota Hilux bakkies.[1][2]
In Potchefstroom officers stopped the first bakkie and found 440 kilograms of dagga inside, arresting its two occupants, a woman and a man.[1][2] A second bakkie stopped on the N12 at Bloemhof carried 259 kilograms of dagga, and its driver was arrested; both vehicles were travelling to Kimberley in the Northern Cape and were confiscated.[1][2] Police are still looking for a fourth suspect who tried to bribe an officer by depositing R20,000 into the officer’s account.[1][2]
Monica Mnyakeni, 60, and Gerald Mnyakeni, 25, appeared in the Potchefstroom Magistrates’ Court on 12 December and remain in custody until 18 December, while Khumbo Mahlalela, 24, appeared in Bloemhof on 11 December and was remanded until 23 December for a bail application.[1] North West provincial commissioner Lieutenant General Sello Kwena commended the officers and role players behind the arrests.[1][2]
