A Namibian drug mule has been jailed for 8 years. The 30-year-old female was arrested in September last year at the OR Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg. She was found guilty and sentenced in the Kempton Park Magistrate’s Court.
A Namibian drug mule has been jailed for 8 years
Brigadier Athlenda Mathe says Pauline Mbangula was taken into custody on 22 September 2024 shortly after landing from São Paulo in Brazil at the OR Tambo International Airport. She had swallowed at least 68 bullet-looking packets filled with cocaine. Mathe says a medical examination confirmed the drugs in her stomach, and she was later made to release the drugs.
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She had swallowed at least 68 bullet-looking packets filled with cocaine
The Brigadier says that at the time of her arrest, Mbangula claimed that she was taken to Brazil by a man she recently met under false pretences that they were going on holiday. She told officers that upon arrival in Brazil, she was forced to swallow the drugs and traffick them to South Africa.
More than 22 people arrested for trafficking narcotics
Mathe added that in the past year, more than 22 drug mules have been arrested by police at OR Tambo International Airport.
