Hawks foil attempt by two men to smuggle gold bars worth millions

THERE was no silver lining for two men and their surreptitious attempt to move a stack of gold bars with an estimated street value of R16 million from the Free State to Gauteng.

Instead, they were nabbed en route to their drop-off point after police uncovered their plan, set-up a sting operation and arrested them.

When questioned about the bag of gold in their vehicle, Daniel Schubert, 61, and Adriaan du Plessis, 49, were unable to provide a plausible explanation.

On Wednesday, they both appeared at the Kempton Park Magistrate’s Court in Gauteng on charges related to being in possession of suspected stolen property and for allegedly possessing unwrought gold worth R16 million.

The provincial spokesperson for the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (known as Hawks), Colonel Katlego Mogale, said the arrests followed information received by members of the Hawks’ Serious Organised Crime Investigation team. 

The information was about a grey BMW travelling from the Free State, headed to Gauteng en-route to sell the gold. 

“The multi-disciplinary team comprising the Serious Organised Crime of the Hawks, Gauteng SAPS Flying Squad, spotted the identified vehicle on the R21, which was successfully pulled over.  Upon searching both the vehicle and the occupants, the team discovered a bag containing eighty 100-gram gold bars with an estimated street value of R16 million,” Mogale said. 

She said the duo could not give any valid reason as to why they were transporting the resources. 

“The pair could not furnish the officers with documentation to transport such materials and were subsequently arrested for unlawful possession of unwrought and possession of suspected stolen property,” Mogale said. 

After a brief court appearance, the matter was postponed until May 22, for a formal bail application. The court ordered that the men remain in custody until then. 

Head of the Hawks in Gauteng, Major General Ebrahim Kadwa, commended the team for their outstanding work. 

“The Hawks remain steadfast in their mission to dismantle illegal mining and smuggling networks. Criminals must understand that no one is beyond the reach of the law. We will continue to use every available resource to combat these unlawful activities that exploit our country's precious metals for personal gain,” Kadwa said.