SA Police Discover Secret Meth Drug Lab Worth 2 Billion Rand
Police in South Africa discovered a multibillion rand drug manufacturing operation on a farm, in one of the country’s drug busts ever.
The South African Police Service (SAPS) Hawks said in a statement they raided the farm after receiving a tipoff. When they searched the farm, they found large quantities of chemicals used to make illicit drugs including acetone and crystal meth.
he chemicals found have an estimated value of 2 billion South African rand (US $109 million). The laboratory was discovered on a farm in a small town in Limpopo province, which borders Zimbabwe, Mozambique and Botswana.
The police arrested 4 people, including 2 Mexicans. Said the Hawks:
“What makes this different from other [seizures] is the involvement of Mexican citizens. It means that our task has just become very difficult.”
The problem of drug labs has grown in South Africa, but none of this industrial scale had been discovered before. In January, police said around 131 drug labs had been shut down across the country since 2019. This year alone the Hawks have discovered 10 secret drug labs.
South Africa has has been said to be potentially one of the “largest meth consumer markets in the world” researchers at the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime revealed in a 2021 report.
The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime has said that the country is also a major drug transit country because of its conducive geographical location and international trade links. The organisation has also said it is a growing market for synthetic drugs.
Methamphetamine trafficking and use is on the rise in Africa. In Zimbabwe it has contributed to the rapid increase in the abuse of drugs by young people.
Acetone is a colourless liquid used to make products such as solvents for paints and plastics, but it can also be also used illegally to produce drugs.
Tags
