BLOEMFONTEIN – The SAPS-led Safer Festive Season Operation Shanela II has achieved significant results, including the seizure of illicit cigarettes in transit aboard a truck and the arrest of two male suspects. The suspects are set to appear in the Bloemfontein Magistrates Court today – Tuesday, facing a charge for the possession of counterfeit goods.

Lt. Col. Thabo Covane, provincial spokesperson for the police, said members intercepted an Isuzu truck carrying illicit cigarettes while travelling towards Bloemfontein via the N1 National Road and Raymond Mhlaba Road. He stated that members of the Bloemfontein Public Order Police Unit, assisted by the Bloemfontein K9 Unit, seized illicit cigarettes with an estimated street value of R4 million.

Covane added that members were busy with operations in Bloemfontein when they received an urgent backup call to search a suspected truck carrying illicit cigarettes. He said the truck, which had two occupants, was pulled over along the road.

Covane said that upon a preliminary investigation, the two occupants were escorted to the Navalsig SAPS station for further questioning, leading to the discovery of 300 boxes containing various illicit cigarettes. The products included the Savanna, Chief, and Sahawi cigarette brands.

“The truck and the cigarettes were confiscated and booked into the Evidence Management System,” he said. Covane said a case docket was opened for investigation in connection with the illicit cigarettes product. He added that officials summoned as part of the broader investigation include the South African Revenue Service (SARS) and the Department of Economic, Small Business Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs (DESTEA).

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In July, the Bloemfontein K9 Unit and Provincial Crime Intelligence arrested three foreign nationals in connection with the illicit cigarette trade in Boshof, a town outside Bloemfontein. This came after they discovered between 300 and 339 boxes alongside more than 15,000 loose packets of counterfeit cigarettes, with an estimated value of R3.6 million.