As the demand for illegal cigarettes grows during Level 3 of the lockdown, the Hawks have arrested two men over alleged bribery and corruption involving cigarettes.
Intiyaz Vahora (49) from Kuruman and Furkan Farukbhai (25) from Lesotho appeared briefly in the Bloemfontein Magistrate’s Court on 11 June and were remanded in custody pending their next appearance on 18 June.
Hawks spokesperson, WO Lynda Steyn, says this comes after information was received that cigarettes were allegedly being stored for distribution in the storage facility in Estoire, Bloemfontein.
Three days prior to their arrest, the Hawks and officials of the South African Revenue Service approached four suspects at the storage facility.
“Armed with a search warrant, two rented units were searched. Only one unit was found loaded with a substantial number of boxes containing cigarettes. The two units were locked to eliminate tampering.”
Steyn said that as the members were about to leave, the owner of the units allegedly approached the Hawks investigating officer to assist him to release the cigarette consignment.
It was also established that the same suspect approached the manager of the storage facility in an effort to make the rental contract disappear.
On Thursday, 11 June, the Hawks officer met with the suspect and an accomplice and was paid gratification of R70 000 in order to release the cigarettes.
The two, Vahora and Farukbhai, were arrested on the spot. An additional R100 000 in cash was found inside their vehicle.
