Illegal dagga farming business busted

A KwaZulu-Natal woman could be spending some time behind bars after police arrested her for allegedly cultivating a field of dagga at her Thunzini homestead.

Illegal dagga farming business busted
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The Upper Tugela Borderline Control unit discovered the field of dagga during a crime prevention operation in the Emmaus area of Bergville.

“The plantation is estimated to yield approximately 2t of dagga which, when dried, will be valued at about R500 000,” said KZN SAPS spokesperson Captain Thulani Zwane. “A 44-year-old woman was arrested and has been charged with cultivating dagga.”

KZN SAPS provincial police commissioner Lieutenant-General Mmamonnye Ngobeni was full of praise for the police officers who made the discovery and arrest. “We pride ourselves with this arrest and the seizure of dagga plants is another successful stride in our endeavours of fighting drug use and the illicit drug trade,” said Ngobeni.

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The mountainous areas along the border with Lesotho are notorious for dagga cultivation and smuggling. Basotho dagga smugglers often use donkey trains to bring their dagga crops down treacherous mountain passes into SA for sale.

Some of these Basotho dagga smugglers are rumoured to be involved in livestock thefts on the SA/Lesotho border.