NPA Asset Forfeiture Unit freezes truck used to smuggle drugs worth R34 million from Malawi - IOL
Limpopo court preserves truck allegedly used to transport R34 million in drugs.
The Polokwane High Court has granted a preservation order over a truck allegedly used to transport drugs worth an estimated R34 million, following their interception at the Beitbridge Border Post.
The National Prosecuting Authorityβs (NPA) Asset Forfeiture Unit (AFU) in Limpopo secured the order on October 28, 2026, preventing the vehicle from being dealt with pending further forfeiture proceedings.
NPA regional spokesperson Mashudu Malabi said the drugs were intercepted on May 27, 2026, after they were allegedly discovered hidden inside a false compartment of a truck travelling from Lilongwe, Malawi, to Johannesburg.
The South African Police Service (SAPS) seized the truck following the discovery.
Three people, Mabuchi Dayo Kumwenda, Phillip Chanza and Thandie Phiri, were arrested and appeared in the Musina Magistrateβs Court on charges relating to drug trafficking and/or possession of drugs.
Malabi said further investigations established that the truck belonged to a company owned by Nonkululeko Goodhope Khoza.
Khoza was subsequently arrested in Midrand alongside her alleged associate, Abumchukwu Victor Ogbuagu.
The pair have since been joined as co-accused in the criminal proceedings alongside Kumwenda, Chanza and Phiri.
Malabi further added that the preservation order forms part of its broader efforts to safeguard property suspected of being used in criminal activities or representing the proceeds of unlawful conduct.
The AFU uses asset forfeiture measures to disrupt criminal enterprises and prevent those involved in crime from benefiting from assets linked to illegal activities.
The authority said these interventions reinforce the principle that crime should not pay.
