Nearly R6 million in drugs has been found on the N1 in Beaufort West.
The Western Cape SAPS confirmed that officers intercepted a vehicle on Thursday night after receiving intelligence that drugs were being transported on the highway.
Spokesperson Warrant Officer Christopher Spies said 57,000 mandrax tablets and 5 kilograms of cocaine were found inside the vehicle, which is estimated to be worth a street value of R5,85 million.
“On Thursday, 10 September 2026 at about 22:40, members attached to the Western Cape Organized Crime Investigations, Crime Intelligence and Beaufort West police conducted an intelligence driven operation when they intercepted a vehicle on the N1 highway. The members brought the vehicle to a halt and proceeded with a search when they found a large quantity of mandrax tablets and cocaine,” said Spies.
A 46-year-old man was arrested and is due in Beaufort West Magistrates Court on Monday, 14 September.
Western Cape Provincial Police Commissioner, Lieutenant General Sizakhele Dyantyi, praised the relevant teams in their efforts to “curb the influx of illicit drugs into vulnerable communities in the province”.
This discovery comes just days after another drug bust in another part of the country, where police uncovered a large-scale drug manufacturing plant in Tshwane.
A joint operation between SAPS Crime Intelligence and the Hawks led to the discovery of the clandestine drug lab, estimated to be worth millions, in Erasmia east of Pretoria, on Wednesday.
The SAPS suspect that around 800,000 Mandrax tablets are produced at that facility per day.
Two foreign nationals were arrested on the scene.
“This is a major blow to a large-scale criminal syndicate and to the illicit drug supply chain in South Africa. By dismantling this facility, we are disrupting the production capacity of a network capable of flooding our communities with hundreds of thousands of Mandrax tablets every single day,” said Deputy National Commissioner for Policing, Lt Gen Mosikili, who was on the scene following the discovery.
