South African Police Confirm R55m Cocaine Theft from Seized Consignment

African coverage presents the Johannesburg cocaine case as evidence that parts of South Africa’s police are entangled with drug trafficking. Hawks investigators and commission testimony are portrayed as exposing how officers allegedly tried to steal drugs worth tens of millions of rand from a seizure they were meant to secure. Commentators expect more officers to be implicated and argue that cleaning up law enforcement is essential if South Africa is to disrupt large cocaine routes through the country.

• •Hawks investigators intercepted Gauteng officers who were allegedly attempting to steal cocaine from the 750kg Johannesburg haul.
• •Testimony to a South African commission links serving police officers directly to the disappearance of R55 million worth of cocaine.
• •The description of officers as 'tsotsi police' by suspect Feroz Khan is used to show how criminals see some police as partners rather than adversaries.
• •South African media warn that such large-scale theft from evidence stores undermines public trust in the police and weakens future drug cases in court.
• •Commentators argue that without strong internal oversight and prosecutions, South Africa will remain a key transit point for high-value cocaine shipments.