(SAPS image above of men arrested during recent Northern Cape cannabis bust)
In the biggest seizure of the month, ten people were arrested in connection with a R5 million consignment of cannabis seized in northern Johannesburg on 27 March 2026. The West Rand Hawks and K9 unit were tipped off about a courier company transporting cannabis from Douglasdale to Ferndale and swooped on an address that had been provided by informants.
SAPS said in a statement issued on : “Upon arrival at the premises, the police found suspects off-loading the boxes from the vehicle. When the suspects saw the police, they scattered, and police arrested them. The police further searched the premises and found another six suspects hiding inside the rooms. During the raid, police discovered various cannabis products with an estimated value of more than R5 million.”
Ten of the 12 people on the property were taken into custody and were due to appear in court earlier this week.
In other developments reported by SAPS:
- Western Cape police last week said: “the concerted efforts by police to rid communities of drugs once again yielded results with the arrest of three suspects and the confiscation of mandrax, khat, and dagga during operations conducted at Laingsburg “On Friday, 27 March 2026, at about 04:00, Laingsburg police members conducted a vehicle checkpoint along the N1, where they stopped a passenger bus. A search of the bus led to the discovery of two bags containing khat. The police arrested three men, aged 41, 53, and 57. The team also arrested a 25-year-old passenger after a small quantity of dagga was found in his possession,” SAPS said in a statement.
- In the Hoedspruit area of Limpopo on 24 March 2026 over 20 people were arrested, mostly for cannabis offences, while a tip-off led to the detention of a man who was stopped at a roadblock and was found to 60 large bales of eSwatini cannabis, with an estimated street value of R2 million in his bakkie.
- In the Free State, SAPS arrested two men, aged 28 and 35, on the R59 near Vredefort on 26 March 2026): Two males (28 and 35) were arrested on the R59 after being found with 12 bags containing approximately 110 kg of ‘Swazi dagga’ with an estimated street value of R100 000.
- In Kwazulu Natal private security patrol officers intercepted a vehicle carrying multiple bags of cannabis on 6 March 2026. The vehicle was pulled over by Marshall Security near Wesmead. The driver and the cannabis, street value of R30 000, was handed over to police.
- Earlier in March, North West police arrested three people during “ongoing operations across to remove drugs from communities”. SAPS says have led to the arrest of three suspects for possession of suspected illegal substances. “On Thursday, 05 March 2026, SAPS, acting on a tip-off, arrested two Nigerian nationals aged 40 and 43, at a residence on Buiten Street, Schweizer-Reneke. During the search, police confiscated a variety of drugs including Mandrax, crystal meth, dagga, as well as cash.”
SAPS also reports the following:
· North West (27 March 2026): In Golfview, a 58-year-old and a 32-year-old were arrested for cultivating dagga, while another suspect was arrested in Motlhabeng village for possession of dagga.
· KwaZulu-Natal (19 March 2026): Five suspects aged 22 to 41 were arrested for dealing in dagga following raids on four shops in the eThekwini District (Umbilo, Amanzimtoti, Brighton Beach, and Montclair).
· Mpumalanga (04 March 2026): Two suspects were arrested near Sulphursprings with 64.1 kg of dagga worth approximately R390,000.
· Northern Cape (08 March 2026): An suspect was arrested in Upington for dealing in dagga after a search of his vehicle.
Meanwhile iOL reports that a 40-year-old man from Yellowwood Park was granted bail of R10,000 in the Durban Magistrate’s Court on 30 March 2026 after appearing on charges following a bust that netted an estimated R1.3 million worth of cannabis, cannabis-infused edibles, and vapes.
Nivashan Moodley, 40, was arrested on charges of contravening the Drugs and Drug Trafficking Act after the Provincial Organised Crime Narcotics Unit at four of his cannabis shops, Sativa Premium, situated in Montclair, Bluff, Umbilo and Amanzimtoti, as well as at a warehouse in Clairwood and his home in Yellowwood Park last Thursday, 26 March 2026.
According to the charge sheet, Moodley was found in possession of several kilograms of cannabis, and products including edibles and vapes with a total street value of R1.3 million during the operation at the warehouse and his home. Piadamoya Banda, 25, a Zimbabwean national, appeared alongside Moodley on charges of contravening the Immigration Act.
#
