Two suspects were arrested after they were caught with explosives during a stop-and-search by members of the Beitbridge Task Team along the N1 between Musina and Beitbridge.
MEMBERS of the Beitbridge Task Team, who guard the border post between South Africa and Zimbabwe, arrested two suspects with explosives during a stop-and-search along the N1 between Musina and Beitbridge.
Limpopo provincial police spokesperson Lieutenant-Colonel Malesela Ledwaba, said members of the Beitbridge Task Team were busy conducting a stop-and- search operation along the N1 road between Musina and Beitbridge on Friday when they stopped a blue Toyota Corolla sedan.
Ledwaba said there were two people in the vehicle.
“Upon searching the vehicle, the members found four bags in the boot of the car containing 247 blasting cartridges, 1,250 connector capped fuses and seven reels of detonating cords,” he said.
Ledwaba said the two suspects were immediately apprehended.
He said the explosives as well as the motor vehicle were confiscated.
The Limpopo provincial police commissioner, Lieutenant-General Thembi Hadebe, commended the members involved for their dedication.
“Police investigations into the origin of these explosives and intended destination are under way,” said Ledwaba.
The police said the two suspects will appear in the Musina Magistrate’s Court on Monday.
In a separate incident last month, IOL reported that a 30-year-old South African man appeared before the Beitbridge Magistrate’s Court in Zimbabwe after he was arrested for allegedly smuggling a pistol and 50 rounds of live ammunition into the neighbouring country.
Meanwhile, earlier this year, IOL reported that three foreign nationals, one woman and two men, were arrested by the police at Beitbridge border post for allegedly being in possession of commercial explosives.
The suspects were arrested as they crossed into South Africa from Zimbabwe.
The police said at the time that they were called by members of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) after they came across the three suspects near the SANDF support base, crossing the borderline from Zimbabwe to South Africa carrying a backpack and two luggage bags.