CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA — Two suspects, Hugo Madlot and Hope Nosipho Cindi, arrested in a major inter-provincial drug bust involving over R6.8 million worth of mandrax and cocaine, have been released on R15,000 bail each. They are scheduled to appear in court on July 7, according to Hawks spokesperson Siyabulela Vukubi.
The arrest followed an operation on August 23, when the Hawks’ South African Narcotics Enforcement Bureau, acting on intelligence, intercepted a Hyundai H1 suspected of transporting drugs from Gauteng to Cape Town. The vehicle was stopped on the N2 near Strand.
Upon searching the vehicle, officers discovered:
71,000 mandrax tablets
14 bricks of cocaine weighing 14 kilograms
Total estimated street value: R6,841,120
The Hyundai H1, valued at R138,600, was seized as it was used as an instrumentality of the crime. The Asset Forfeiture Unit of the National Prosecuting Authority and the Hawks’ Asset Forfeiture Investigation team subsequently obtained a preservation order from the Western Cape High Court.
