Man Arrested for Trying to Smuggle 23 Pieces of Gold Worth R11m
- A 33-year-old man has been arrested and is expected to appear in court for trying to smuggle gold into the country
- The suspect was nabbed at the OR Tambo International airport with 23 pieces of gold worth R11 million in his luggage
- The unnamed individual will be appearing in the Kempton Park regional court on Monday, 10 May
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A man has been arrested at the OR Tambo International Airport after being found with an estimated R11 million worth of gold in his luggage. The 33-year-old is expected to appear in the Kempton Park regional court on Monday, 10 May.
The Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (Hawks) Serious Organised Crime Investigation team stated that the arrest was made on Saturday. The suspect had reportedly been travelling from Zimbabwe.
Police said that the man was asked to scan his luggage at the South African Revenue Service's customs section in the international arrivals area.
Source: Getty Images
According to TimesLIVE, the suspect allegedly hadn't declared the items, nor did he have any licences or permits to transport or be in possession of the assets. The report stated that the Hawks were called in to arrest the man and conduct an investigation.
News24 reports that the suspect was found in possession of 23 individual pieces of gold. He will be facing charges of contravening the Customs Act 91 of 1964 and the Precious Metals Act 37 of 2005.
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In other crime news, Briefly News reported that the Hawks have swept down on six people who allegedly tried to defraud SARS out of nearly R1 million.
Themba Mabandla Pila, 34, Sthembiso Nelson Ubisi, 40, Baby Martha Malomane, 39, Themba Edlon Ndlovu, 46, Patricia Nobuhle Ndlovu, 46, and Caswell Thokozani Shongw, 40, were arrested by the authorities on 29 April.
In a separate incident, Briefly News reported that the Hawks says that they are formally investigating two instances of supposed theft – totalling over R41 quadrillion.
The cases match with allegations made by senior ANC official Tokyo Sexwale a week ago, where he claimed that a massive measure of cash had been taken from the public coffers.
While not straightforwardly referencing Sexwale by name, the Hawks said that the cases were opened by an individual professing to be named by the administration as a measurable specialist.
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Source: Briefly News
