South African police seize $4m of heroin in lorry from Mozambique

By Jorge Joaquim

South African police have seized R75m ($4.2m) worth of heroin in a lorry travelling from Mozambique, website Independent Online reports.

Several police divisions were involved in seizing the drugs from the lorry, which was stopped in Mpumalanga province, which borders Mozambique, on Sunday. Firefighters opened a hidden compartment containing 250kg of heroin in 1kg bags.

Godfrey Lebeya, national head of the Hawks, South Africa’s police unit for major crimes, said that the seizure came from work by a planning cell set up by South Africa, Tanzania and Mozambique to counter heroin trafficking.

The Hawks were investigating how the lorry crossed the border without being thoroughly checked, he added.