By Mapaballo Borotho

- SAPS has arrested a 45-year-old man at OR Tambo International Airport and seized suspected cocaine worth more than R800 000.
- The suspect was allegedly travelling to Hong Kong when he was arrested following an intelligence-led operation.
- His arrest comes just four days after another alleged drug mule was arrested at the airport with cocaine concealed in his luggage.
The South African Police Service (SAPS) has arrested another alleged drug mule at OR Tambo International Airport and seized suspected cocaine with an estimated street value of more than R800 000.
Police spokesperson Amanda Van Wyk says the 45-year-old suspect was allegedly travelling to Hong Kong, China, when he was arrested at the airport.
“The suspect was arrested on Monday, 7 September 2026, following intelligence-led information. A subsequent search of his luggage resulted in the seizure of drugs suspected to be cocaine,” Van Wyk said.
The suspect is expected to appear before the Kempton Park Magistrates’ Court this week on drug-related charges.
The arrest comes just four days after SAPS arrested another alleged drug mule at the same airport.
On 3 September, a 54-year-old man was arrested after suspected cocaine was allegedly found concealed inside his luggage. He was also reportedly travelling to Hong Kong, China.
Van Wyk says the two arrests highlight the police’s continued efforts to disrupt drug trafficking networks at South Africa’s ports of entry.
“These successive successes at South Africa’s busiest airport demonstrate the SAPS’s continued efforts to disrupt and dismantle drug trafficking networks through intelligence-driven operations at the country’s ports of entry,” she said.
The latest arrest forms part of ongoing intelligence-led operations aimed at intercepting suspected drug trafficking through OR Tambo International Airport.
READ NEXT: