Single and divorced mothers with financial troubles are being recruited daily by drug syndicates, a spy chief warned.
|||Durban - Single and divorced mothers with financial troubles were being recruited daily by South African and Nigerian drug syndicates to travel as international drug couriers, a top Indian spy chief has warned.
The deputy commissioner for the Mumbai Air Intelligence Unit, Sameer Wankhede, said three South African women had been arrested since January for trafficking drugs worth millions of rand.
In one of the biggest drug busts in recent times, this past week Johannesburg woman Sity Lentin, 42, was arrested for allegedly trafficking drugs worth 13 crore (approximately R22 million).
The single mother of three was arrested at the Chatrapati Shivaji International Airport, in Mumbai.
On Monday, another Johannesburg woman, Jacqueline Seth Lolo, 36, was nabbed at King Shaka International Airport, allegedly with 400g of heroin and 1kg of cocaine - valued at R1.2m - concealed in a hidden compartment in her luggage.
She appeared in the Verulam Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday on drug trafficking charges and was remanded (in custody) for a bail application next week.
Lentin was allegedly arrested with 26kg of “party” drugs like cocaine, methamphetamine (tik) and ketamine (used as animal tranquillisers).
She appeared in the Mumbai Magistrate’s Court on Monday and was remanded (in custody) to the Byculla Women’s Prison.
She is expected to appear in court again on June 3.
A police source in KwaZulu-Natal speaking about the recruitment process in Durban, said local women were being wooed by Nigerian drug lords along Durban’s beachfront and Mahatma Gandhi (Point) Road with promises of international travel and lucrative cash incentives.
He said women desperate for cash were easy prey for the drug syndicates. Wankhede said most single and divorced South African women travelling alone to Mumbai were profiled by crime intelligence operatives.
“Lentin’s profile rang alarm bells immediately for us. She was a single mother, she had been in India for less than a week and her return flight home included stops in Addis Ababa and Maputo - both known drug destinations.”
He said Lentin had travelled from Johannesburg to Delhi where she spent five days before flying to Mumbai.
“She was very suspicious and a definite red alert. We intercepted her moments before she could board her Ethiopian Airways flight to South Africa.”
He said when questioned about why she was in India, Lentin had replied she loved the country and was a regular visitor.
“She lied,” he said. “This was her first trip to our country. We interrogated her further about the tourist spots she had visited and she could not name one. She also had no photographs or videos recording her ‘holiday’ in India.”
Wankhede said Lentin had travelled to India on a tourist visa.
He said when she was confronted about allegedly having drugs in her suitcase, she pleaded innocence.
An examination of her luggage revealed a false pocket at the bottom in which the drugs were allegedly hidden, Wankhede said.
“She became hysterical and was crying a lot. Unfortunately that did not spare her from being arrested.”
If convicted, Lentin could spend up to 10 years in jail.
“Everything that she told us did not add up. In our view the evidence against her is overwhelming,” he said.
“But, it could take up to a year before she is brought to trial.” He said the drugs had been sent for forensic analysis.
Wankhede said Lentin had told them that she had worked for an events management company in Johannesburg which had operations in India, Canada and Singapore.
Her family had been contacted in South Africa and were shocked at her arrest, he said.
She lived with her mother and sister who were caring for her three children, who are all under the age of 13, he said.
Last month, Nigerian national Lara Okin was arrested in the early hours of the morning before she could board her flight at the Chatrapati Shivaji International Airport.
Wankhede alleged Okin had cleverly concealed the drugs, which included methamphetamine and cocaine, in her luggage.
The substance was hidden under beef fat on top of which dry fish was kept.
She apparently thought the customs officials would not check her luggage properly, he said.
“But her negative profile and (the) foul smell emanating from her luggage attracted the attention of customs officials.”
Wankhede said Okin had frequently visited Mumbai and claimed she was supposed to deliver the drugs to her customer in Colaba.
In the past three years the smuggling of drugs such as heroin, morphine, cocaine and hashish had increased, Wankhede said.
He said that to facilitate swift arrests, police in Mumbai offered large cash rewards to informers.
Daily News