{"id":269264,"date":"2025-09-29T10:39:45","date_gmt":"2025-09-29T08:39:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/?p=269264"},"modified":"2025-09-29T10:51:51","modified_gmt":"2025-09-29T08:51:51","slug":"vala-umgodi-team-makes-major-counterfeit-goods-arrests-in-welkom","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/vala-umgodi-team-makes-major-counterfeit-goods-arrests-in-welkom\/","title":{"rendered":"Vala Umgodi Team Makes Major Counterfeit Goods Arrests in Welkom"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Welkom &#8211;<\/strong> The Vala Umgodi Combat Team, working together with the Proactive VOC 1 Team, struck another blow to the criminal underworld in Welkom when they arrested two foreign nationals in possession of counterfeit goods with an estimated street value of R500 000.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>On Friday, 26 September, at about 10:30, members conducted a disruptive and compliance operation in the Welkom area. During the operation, two suspects aged 47 and 36 were found with large quantities of illicit cigarettes and other counterfeit items. The goods were seized.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"768\" height=\"1024\" data-attachment-id=\"269267\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/vala-umgodi-team-makes-major-counterfeit-goods-arrests-in-welkom\/sigarettes-1\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Sigarettes-1.jpg\" data-orig-size=\"960,1280\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Sigarettes 1\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"&lt;p&gt;Rolling papers, skin-lightening creams, and boxes of tablets believed to be sold illegally.&lt;\/p&gt;\n\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Sigarettes-1-768x1024.jpg\" src=\"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Sigarettes-1-768x1024.jpg\" alt=\"Rolling papers, skin-lightening creams, and boxes of tablets believed to be sold illegally.\n\n\" class=\"wp-image-269267\" srcset=\"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Sigarettes-1-768x1024.jpg 768w, https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Sigarettes-1-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Sigarettes-1.jpg 960w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Rolling papers, skin-lightening creams, and boxes of tablets believed to be sold illegally.\n\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>The confiscated items included:<br>\u2022 Hundreds of boxes of counterfeit cigarettes of various brands (Chief, Remington Gold, Savannah, Sahawi, and Ossum)<br>\u2022 Sigarette rolling papers, skin-lightening creams, and boxes of tablets believed to be sold illegally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The suspects were arrested on charges of possession of illegal cigarettes and contravention of the Counterfeit Goods Act.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Hundreds of boxes of counterfeit cigarettes of various brands (Chief, Remington Gold, Savannah, Sahawi, and Ossum) were confiscated, as were cigarette rolling papers, skin-lightening creams, and boxes of tablets believed to be sold illegally.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":28,"featured_media":269266,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_yoast_wpseo_linkdex":"","_yoast_wpseo_content_score":"60","_yoast_wpseo_inclusive_language_score":"90","_yoast_wpseo_is_cornerstone":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_yoast_wpseo_opengraph-title":"","_yoast_wpseo_opengraph-description":"","_yoast_wpseo_opengraph-image":"","_yoast_wpseo_opengraph-image-id":"","_yoast_wpseo_twitter-title":"","_yoast_wpseo_twitter-description":"","_yoast_wpseo_twitter-image":"","_yoast_wpseo_twitter-image-id":"","newspack_ads_suppress_ads":false,"newspack_sponsor_sponsorship_scope":"","newspack_sponsor_native_byline_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_native_category_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_style":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_placement":"inherit","_crsspst_to_novanewscoza":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozabloemnewsexpress":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozacityvision":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozadistrictmailhelderberg":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozaeikestadnuus":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozahermanustimes":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozakomani-karoo":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozakougaexpress":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozamthathaexpress":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozanoordkaapbulletin":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozapaarlpost":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozapeexpress":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozapeoplespost":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozaswartlandgazette":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozatygerburger":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozaudexpress":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozavrystaatkroon":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozaweskusnuus":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozaweslander":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozaworcesterstandard":false,"_EventAllDay":"","_EventTimezone":"","_EventStartDate":"","_EventEndDate":"","_EventStartDateUTC":"","_EventEndDateUTC":"","_EventShowMap":"","_EventShowMapLink":"","_EventURL":"","_EventCost":"","_EventCostDescription":"","_EventCurrencySymbol":"","_EventCurrencyCode":"","_EventCurrencyPosition":"","_EventDateTimeSeparator":"","_EventTimeRangeSeparator":"","_EventOrganizerID":"","_EventVenueID":"","_OrganizerEmail":"","_OrganizerPhone":"","_OrganizerWebsite":"","_VenueAddress":"","_VenueCity":"","_VenueCountry":"","_VenueProvince":"","_VenueState":"","_VenueZip":"","_VenuePhone":"","_VenueURL":"","_VenueStateProvince":"","_VenueLat":"","_VenueLng":"","_VenueShowMap":"","_VenueShowMapLink":"","_application":"","_batch_id":"","_company_name":"","_company_tagline":"","_company_twitter":"","_company_video":"","_company_website":"","_custom_id":"","_EventDuration":"","_EventOrigin":"","_EventTimezoneAbbr":"","_featured":"","_filled":"","_job_expires":"","_job_location":"","_media_credit":"","_media_credit_url":"","_menu_item_menu_item_parent":"","_menu_item_object":"","_menu_item_object_id":"","_menu_item_target":"","_menu_item_type":"","_menu_item_url":"","_menu_item_xfn":"","_navis_media_can_distribute":"","_navis_media_credit_org":"","_OrganizerOrigin":"","_provider":"","_pum_built_in":"","_pum_default_theme":"","_pum_form_conversion_count":"","_remote_id":"","_remote_name":"","_remote_position":"","_report_frequency":"","_report_reference_dates":"","_send_attempts":"","_site_id":"","_sitemap_exclude":"","_sitemap_frequency":"","_sitemap_priority":"","_source_url":"","_subscription_period":"","_subscription_period_interval":"","_subscription_price":"","_tec_slr_enabled":"","_tec_slr_layout":"","_template_type":"","_ticket_end_date":"","_ticket_start_date":"","_tribe_aggregator_allow_multiple_organizers":"","_tribe_aggregator_content_type":"","_tribe_aggregator_file":"","_tribe_aggregator_finalized":"","_tribe_aggregator_hash":"","_tribe_aggregator_import_id":"","_tribe_aggregator_import_name":"","_tribe_aggregator_interactive":"","_tribe_aggregator_origin":"","_tribe_aggregator_post_status":"","_tribe_aggregator_preview":"","_tribe_aggregator_source_name":"","_tribe_aggregator_type":"","_tribe_default_ticket_provider":"","_tribe_hide_attendees_list":"","_tribe_rsvp_for_event":"","_tribe_ticket_capacity":"","_tribe_ticket_header":"","_tribe_ticket_show_description":"","_tribe_ticket_show_not_going":"","_tribe_ticket_version":"","_type":"","_VenueOrigin":"","_wp_attachment_context":"","_wp_attachment_image_alt":"","_wp_font_face_file":"","_wp_old_date":"","_yoast_wpseo_estimated-reading-time-minutes":"2","_yoast_wpseo_focuskeywords":"","_yoast_wpseo_focuskw_text_input":"","_yoast_wpseo_keywordsynonyms":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_block-catalog":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":"7970","_yoast_wpseo_primary_job_listing_type":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_nova_retailer":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_publication":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_tribe_events_cat":"","_yoast_wpseo_videositemap-duration":"","_yoast_wpseo_videositemap-rating":"","_menu_item_classes":[],"_tribe_modified_fields":[],"_wp_attachment_backup_sizes":[],"_wp_suggested_privacy_policy_content":[],"_yoast_post_redirect_info":[],"_yoast_wpseo_video_meta":[],"activation_date":"","archive_insertion_is_repeating":"","archive_insertion_posts_count":"","article_feature_media":"","article_feature_type":"","article_main_image_caption":"","article_media_icon":"","article_template":"","author_byline":"","background_color":"","block_editor":"1","byline":"","cmplz_hide_cookiebanner":"","competition_end_date":"","contact_advertise_email":"","contact_advertise_phone":"","contact_editorial_email":"","contact_general_email":"","contact_general_phone":"","contact_office_hours":"","contact_physical_address":"","enabled":"","featured_image_custom_caption":"","featured_video_url":"","fields":"","font_body":"","font_header":"","frequency":"","headline":"","hide_border":"","icon":"","is_wp_suggestion":"","issuu_download_url":"","issuu_embed_url":"","language_version_url":"","large_border":"","name":"","nm_contact_name":"","nm_contact_number":"","nm_date_lost":"","no_overlay_background":"","node-url":"","obituary_born_date":"","obituary_died_date":"","obituary_memoriam_text":"","origin":"","overlay_color":"","overlay_opacity":"","overlay_size":"","placement":"","plural_label":"","post_author":"","post_id":"","post_language":"en","secret-key":"","sponsored_utm_campaign":"","sponsored_utm_content":"","sponsored_utm_medium":"","sponsored_utm_source":"","sponsored_utm_term":"","start_date":"","utm_suppression":"","video_embed_url":"","wp_pattern_sync_status":"","data_version":[],"enclosure":[],"pongrass_image":[],"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_newspack_byline_active":false,"_newspack_byline":"","newspack_content_restriction_is_exempt":false,"scaip_prevent_shortcode_addition":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[7970],"tags":[],"newspack_spnsrs_tax":[],"publication":[],"class_list":["post-269264","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.8 (Yoast SEO v27.8) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Vala Umgodi Team Makes Major Counterfeit Goods Arrests in Welkom | Vista<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/vala-umgodi-team-makes-major-counterfeit-goods-arrests-in-welkom\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Vala Umgodi Team Makes Major Counterfeit Goods Arrests in Welkom\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Hundreds of boxes of counterfeit cigarettes of various brands (Chief, Remington Gold, Savannah, Sahawi, and Ossum) were confiscated, as were cigarette rolling papers, skin-lightening creams, and boxes of tablets believed to be sold illegally.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/vala-umgodi-team-makes-major-counterfeit-goods-arrests-in-welkom\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Vista\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/VistaNewsNuus\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-09-29T08:39:45+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-09-29T08:51:51+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Sigarettes-2.jpg?fit=960%2C1280&ssl=1\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"960\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1280\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Marti Will\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Marti Will\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/vistanews\\\/vala-umgodi-team-makes-major-counterfeit-goods-arrests-in-welkom\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/vistanews\\\/vala-umgodi-team-makes-major-counterfeit-goods-arrests-in-welkom\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Marti Will\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/vistanews\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/5fcff7984992abaf4b29a15603295956\"},\"headline\":\"Vala Umgodi Team Makes Major Counterfeit Goods Arrests in Welkom\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-09-29T08:39:45+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-09-29T08:51:51+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/vistanews\\\/vala-umgodi-team-makes-major-counterfeit-goods-arrests-in-welkom\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":155,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/vistanews\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/vistanews\\\/vala-umgodi-team-makes-major-counterfeit-goods-arrests-in-welkom\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/vistanews\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/09\\\/Sigarettes-2.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-ZA\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/vistanews\\\/vala-umgodi-team-makes-major-counterfeit-goods-arrests-in-welkom\\\/#respond\"]}],\"copyrightYear\":\"2025\",\"copyrightHolder\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/vistanews\\\/#organization\"}},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/vistanews\\\/vala-umgodi-team-makes-major-counterfeit-goods-arrests-in-welkom\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/vistanews\\\/vala-umgodi-team-makes-major-counterfeit-goods-arrests-in-welkom\\\/\",\"name\":\"Vala Umgodi Team Makes Major Counterfeit Goods Arrests in Welkom | Vista\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/vistanews\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/vistanews\\\/vala-umgodi-team-makes-major-counterfeit-goods-arrests-in-welkom\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/vistanews\\\/vala-umgodi-team-makes-major-counterfeit-goods-arrests-in-welkom\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/vistanews\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/09\\\/Sigarettes-2.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-09-29T08:39:45+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-09-29T08:51:51+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/vistanews\\\/vala-umgodi-team-makes-major-counterfeit-goods-arrests-in-welkom\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-ZA\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/vistanews\\\/vala-umgodi-team-makes-major-counterfeit-goods-arrests-in-welkom\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-ZA\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/vistanews\\\/vala-umgodi-team-makes-major-counterfeit-goods-arrests-in-welkom\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/vistanews\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/09\\\/Sigarettes-2.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/vistanews\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/09\\\/Sigarettes-2.jpg\",\"width\":960,\"height\":1280,\"caption\":\"Hundreds of boxes of counterfeit cigarettes of various brands (Chief, Remington Gold, Savannah, Sahawi, and Ossum) were confiscated.\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/vistanews\\\/vala-umgodi-team-makes-major-counterfeit-goods-arrests-in-welkom\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/vistanews\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"News\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/vistanews\\\/news\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":3,\"name\":\"Vala Umgodi Team Makes Major Counterfeit Goods Arrests in Welkom\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/vistanews\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/vistanews\\\/\",\"name\":\"Vista News\",\"description\":\"To Inform, Engage and Empower Local Communities\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/vistanews\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/vistanews\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-ZA\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/vistanews\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Vista News\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/vistanews\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-ZA\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/vistanews\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/vistanews\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/03\\\/vista-site-icon.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/vistanews\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/03\\\/vista-site-icon.png\",\"width\":512,\"height\":512,\"caption\":\"Vista News\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/vistanews\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.facebook.com\\\/VistaNewsNuus\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.instagram.com\\\/vistanewspaper\"],\"description\":\"Vista is a regional newspaper based in Welkom, the capital of Matjhabeng Municipality, in the central Free State. Vista, an English\\\/Afrikaans publication, first brought news to the community on 23 April 1971, with the following message on the front page: \u201cWe are here to write about the Goldfield and its people. We are here to serve the area in which we find ourselves, and with the help of our readers \u2013 who refine us with their constructive criticism.\",\"email\":\"vistanews@novusmedia.co.za\",\"telephone\":\"+27573571304\",\"legalName\":\"Novus Media (Pty) Ltd\",\"foundingDate\":\"2025-01-01\",\"vatID\":\"4100318916\",\"taxID\":\"2000\\\/018234\\\/07\",\"numberOfEmployees\":{\"@type\":\"QuantitativeValue\",\"minValue\":\"51\",\"maxValue\":\"200\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/vistanews\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/5fcff7984992abaf4b29a15603295956\",\"name\":\"Marti Will\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-ZA\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/8fc11fdeaed1ad25e241ff69e1251e7b5aaa716191f8e7160d3f8bd61e465cf2?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/8fc11fdeaed1ad25e241ff69e1251e7b5aaa716191f8e7160d3f8bd61e465cf2?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/8fc11fdeaed1ad25e241ff69e1251e7b5aaa716191f8e7160d3f8bd61e465cf2?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Marti Will\"},\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/vistanews\\\/author\\\/marti-will\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Vala Umgodi Team Makes Major Counterfeit Goods Arrests in Welkom | Vista","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/vala-umgodi-team-makes-major-counterfeit-goods-arrests-in-welkom\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Vala Umgodi Team Makes Major Counterfeit Goods Arrests in Welkom","og_description":"Hundreds of boxes of counterfeit cigarettes of various brands (Chief, Remington Gold, Savannah, Sahawi, and Ossum) were confiscated, as were cigarette rolling papers, skin-lightening creams, and boxes of tablets believed to be sold illegally.","og_url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/vala-umgodi-team-makes-major-counterfeit-goods-arrests-in-welkom\/","og_site_name":"Vista","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/VistaNewsNuus","article_published_time":"2025-09-29T08:39:45+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-09-29T08:51:51+00:00","og_image":[{"width":960,"height":1280,"url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Sigarettes-2.jpg?fit=960%2C1280&ssl=1","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Marti Will","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Marti Will","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/vala-umgodi-team-makes-major-counterfeit-goods-arrests-in-welkom\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/vala-umgodi-team-makes-major-counterfeit-goods-arrests-in-welkom\/"},"author":{"name":"Marti Will","@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/#\/schema\/person\/5fcff7984992abaf4b29a15603295956"},"headline":"Vala Umgodi Team Makes Major Counterfeit Goods Arrests in Welkom","datePublished":"2025-09-29T08:39:45+00:00","dateModified":"2025-09-29T08:51:51+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/vala-umgodi-team-makes-major-counterfeit-goods-arrests-in-welkom\/"},"wordCount":155,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/vala-umgodi-team-makes-major-counterfeit-goods-arrests-in-welkom\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Sigarettes-2.jpg","articleSection":["News"],"inLanguage":"en-ZA","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/vala-umgodi-team-makes-major-counterfeit-goods-arrests-in-welkom\/#respond"]}],"copyrightYear":"2025","copyrightHolder":{"@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/#organization"}},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/vala-umgodi-team-makes-major-counterfeit-goods-arrests-in-welkom\/","url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/vala-umgodi-team-makes-major-counterfeit-goods-arrests-in-welkom\/","name":"Vala Umgodi Team Makes Major Counterfeit Goods Arrests in Welkom | Vista","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/vala-umgodi-team-makes-major-counterfeit-goods-arrests-in-welkom\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/vala-umgodi-team-makes-major-counterfeit-goods-arrests-in-welkom\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Sigarettes-2.jpg","datePublished":"2025-09-29T08:39:45+00:00","dateModified":"2025-09-29T08:51:51+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/vala-umgodi-team-makes-major-counterfeit-goods-arrests-in-welkom\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-ZA","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/vala-umgodi-team-makes-major-counterfeit-goods-arrests-in-welkom\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-ZA","@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/vala-umgodi-team-makes-major-counterfeit-goods-arrests-in-welkom\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Sigarettes-2.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Sigarettes-2.jpg","width":960,"height":1280,"caption":"Hundreds of boxes of counterfeit cigarettes of various brands (Chief, Remington Gold, Savannah, Sahawi, and Ossum) were confiscated."},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/vala-umgodi-team-makes-major-counterfeit-goods-arrests-in-welkom\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"News","item":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/news\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Vala Umgodi Team Makes Major Counterfeit Goods Arrests in Welkom"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/#website","url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/","name":"Vista News","description":"To Inform, Engage and Empower Local Communities","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-ZA"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/#organization","name":"Vista News","url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-ZA","@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/vista-site-icon.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/vista-site-icon.png","width":512,"height":512,"caption":"Vista News"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/VistaNewsNuus","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/vistanewspaper"],"description":"Vista is a regional newspaper based in Welkom, the capital of Matjhabeng Municipality, in the central Free State. Vista, an English\/Afrikaans publication, first brought news to the community on 23 April 1971, with the following message on the front page: \u201cWe are here to write about the Goldfield and its people. We are here to serve the area in which we find ourselves, and with the help of our readers \u2013 who refine us with their constructive criticism.","email":"vistanews@novusmedia.co.za","telephone":"+27573571304","legalName":"Novus Media (Pty) Ltd","foundingDate":"2025-01-01","vatID":"4100318916","taxID":"2000\/018234\/07","numberOfEmployees":{"@type":"QuantitativeValue","minValue":"51","maxValue":"200"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/#\/schema\/person\/5fcff7984992abaf4b29a15603295956","name":"Marti Will","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-ZA","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8fc11fdeaed1ad25e241ff69e1251e7b5aaa716191f8e7160d3f8bd61e465cf2?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8fc11fdeaed1ad25e241ff69e1251e7b5aaa716191f8e7160d3f8bd61e465cf2?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8fc11fdeaed1ad25e241ff69e1251e7b5aaa716191f8e7160d3f8bd61e465cf2?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Marti Will"},"url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/author\/marti-will\/"}]}},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Sigarettes-2.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":267494,"url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/vala-umgodi-operations-secure-34-arrests-and-r545000-contraband-and-drugs-seized\/","url_meta":{"origin":269264,"position":0},"title":"Vala uMgodi hits a hard blow to contraband and drugs","author":"Marti Will","date":"4 August 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Some of the suspects were found in possession of fraudulent immigration documents.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;News&quot;","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"The Vala Umgodi team, with aerial support from a police chopper and drones, conducted disruptive actions at illegal mining hotspots in Odendaalsrus, Welkom, Theunissen and Virginia.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Crime.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Crime.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Crime.png?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Crime.png?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Crime.png?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":46163,"url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/police-found-3-814-bundles-of-khat-plant-in-bus-on-n1-at-grasmere-tollgate-20241213\/","url_meta":{"origin":269264,"position":1},"title":"Police found 3 814 bundles of Khat plant in bus on N1 at Grasmere tollgate","author":"Vista","date":"13 December 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Members attached to the Welkom K9 Unit, Welkom Flying Squad and Operation Vala Umgodi operators nabbed two suspects for drug trafficking and possession of drugs.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;News&quot;","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"The police intercepted 6 600 bundles of Khat en route to Cape Town.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/317fca017dae4fc98e47f7766867d861.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/317fca017dae4fc98e47f7766867d861.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/317fca017dae4fc98e47f7766867d861.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/317fca017dae4fc98e47f7766867d861.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/317fca017dae4fc98e47f7766867d861.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/317fca017dae4fc98e47f7766867d861.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":77560,"url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/disruptive-actions-cause-quite-a-stir\/","url_meta":{"origin":269264,"position":2},"title":"Disruptive actions cause quite a stir","author":"Marti Will","date":"28 March 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Five men have been arrested by Operation Vala uMgodi operatives while they were busy with either open cast mining activities or with the separation process on a makeshift slope table in identified illicit mining hotspots.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;News&quot;","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/VALA4_93577.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/VALA4_93577.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/VALA4_93577.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/VALA4_93577.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/VALA4_93577.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":46728,"url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/police-operations-continues-ridding-free-state-of-criminal-acts-20241029\/","url_meta":{"origin":269264,"position":3},"title":"Police operations continues ridding Free State of criminal acts","author":"Vista","date":"7 November 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Two more arrests have been made, and large amounts of contraband and drugs were seized during the continuing Operation Vala uMgodi actions in the Free State.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;News&quot;","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/787106283c4d477eba23fc5a67c3b43f.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/787106283c4d477eba23fc5a67c3b43f.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/787106283c4d477eba23fc5a67c3b43f.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/787106283c4d477eba23fc5a67c3b43f.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":265327,"url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/vala-umgodi-hits-hard\/","url_meta":{"origin":269264,"position":4},"title":"Vala uMgodi hits hard","author":"Vista","date":"4 July 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"The Vala Umgodi Combat teams, working together with pro-active and mine security, have dealt a substantial blow to illegal mining operations and the fight against unlicensed firearms in recent operations across the Free State. In the early hours of 1 July a vigilant Vala uMgodi Combat Team, acting on actionable\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;News&quot;","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/VALA1_00617.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/VALA1_00617.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/VALA1_00617.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/VALA1_00617.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/VALA1_00617.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":48555,"url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/operaton-brings-more-boots-on-the-ground-to-deal-with-illicit-mining-and-immigration-in-the-goldfields-20240517\/","url_meta":{"origin":269264,"position":5},"title":"Operaton brings more boots on the ground to deal with illicit mining and immigration in the Goldfields","author":"Vista","date":"17 May 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Four men were arrested for contravention for contravention of the immigration act during an operation to combat legal mining in Welkom.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;News&quot;","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/a82d98708b90479e84eb8e410444d34f.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/a82d98708b90479e84eb8e410444d34f.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/a82d98708b90479e84eb8e410444d34f.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/a82d98708b90479e84eb8e410444d34f.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]}],"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"Vista","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/269264","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/28"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=269264"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/269264\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/269266"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=269264"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=269264"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=269264"},{"taxonomy":"newspack_spnsrs_tax","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/newspack_spnsrs_tax?post=269264"},{"taxonomy":"publication","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/vistanews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/publication?post=269264"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}