Assets worth hundreds of thousands seized in Northern Cape crime crackdown

A  number of forfeiture orders were issued for goods and cash that were obtained from the proceeds of illegal activities, following operations led by the SAPS, Hawks and National Prosecuting Authority’s Asset Forfeiture unit (AFU) this month. 

Hawks Northern Cape spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Tebogo Thebe said the Postmasburg police arrested a suspect in February 2024 after he was caught selling substances that looked like Tik and Mandrax to an agent with an estimated street value of R15 400. 

He said the cash was seized and a forfeiture order was granted by the Northern Cape High Court as the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation’s Priority Crime Specialised Investigation (PCSI) and AFU had sufficient evidence that it had been derived from the proceeds of crime. 

Thebe stated that the court also granted a forfeiture order to seize money to the value of R18,674 from a suspect who was arrested in Roodepan in March 2024, who was selling dagga at a nearby farm.

"The police seized both the dagga and cash." 

Stock theft

He added that in another incident, the Kuruman police received information about a person attempting to privately sell five cows to one of the community members.

"The following day, the concerned community member tracked the cows at a nearby abattoir. Police were called to the scene, and the suspect was arrested, resulting in his vehicle, an Isuzu LDV worth R130,000, being confiscated. After an application was lodged with the court, a forfeiture order of R130,000 was granted for the vehicle. The suspect was arrested for stock theft." 

Thebe indicated that another Isuzu bakkie worth R80,000 was forfeited to the state after being found with stolen goats in Mothibistad rural areas during February 2025.

"SAPS members attached to the Schmidtsdrift police station stopped a Tata bakkie towing a large trailer loaded with cattle. Officers requested the necessary transportation permits in terms of the law, but the driver could not produce the necessary documents. The vehicle was then seized for further investigation, resulting in the preservation order of the vehicle worth R280,000 being granted by the court. Video footage confirming the theft of the cattle was made available," he said.

The Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation Provincial Head Major General Stephen Mabuela believed that proactive measures had ensured that transgressors were not given the luxury of enjoying the proceeds of crime.

"Those who allow others to use their properties, such as vehicles, to commit a crime will also lose them,” Mabuela added.