Operation Vala Umgodi team targets Samaria informal settlement
THE MULTI-disciplinary Operation Vala Umgodi team launched a comprehensive operation in the Samaria informal settlement in Kimberley on May 10.
The operation, which was aimed at addressing issues of undocumented persons, illegal firearms, drugs and illicit mining, resulted in the arrest of 20 undocumented Lesotho nationals. The arrested individuals included 19 men aged between 24 and 49, and a 27-year-old woman, as confirmed by police spokesperson Sergeant Molefi Shemane.
In addition to the arrests, the operation also led to the confiscation of liquor from unlicensed outlets, which are often linked to serious crimes in the area. This resulted in further arrests and fines issued to two South African men, aged 33 and 40, for illegally dealing in liquor.
Numerous tools and equipment believed to have been used in the commission of illicit mining activities were also confiscated.
The operation also led to the confiscation of numerous tools and equipment suspected to have been used in illicit mining activities, further intensifying the fight against such activities in the Frances Baard District.
The provincial commissioner of the SAPS in the Northern Cape, Lieutenant-General Koliswa Otola, commended the collaboration between the different justice, crime prevention and security clusters in “intensifying the fight” against illicit mining and related activities in the district.
