The third accused in the R400 million drug bust in the Western Cape has been sentenced to an effective eight years behind bars.
In a plea and sentence agreement heard in the Khayelitsha Priority Crimes Court, Ebrahim Kara confessed to supplying one of his co-accused with a truck to drive to Gauteng to collect the drugs and return with them to Cape Town.
Provincial NPA spokesperson Eric Ntabazalila said, as part of his sentencing, Kara forfeited R2 million to the State as part of his sentence.
“The court further ordered Kara to surrender the 672 bricks of cocaine, which were found in a truck he was driving, to the State.”
Kara’s co-accused, Elias Radebe, 42, and Meshack Mzungezi Ngobese, 47, were arrested after they were found with the cocaine haul in August 2022, driving on the N1 highway.
They were sentenced earlier this month.
Radebe was sentenced to an effective year of imprisonment, while Ngobese was sentenced to six years of direct imprisonment.
Both accused entered into a plea and sentencing agreement with the State.
Kara, a father of five, business owner, and IT consultant, said in his plea and sentencing agreement that after the truck was loaded with drugs in Gauteng, Radebe collected Ngobese, who was staying in the province.
“They both drove down to Cape Town, with the drugs packed into a crate.”
Kara said on August 4, 2022, he took the truck to N1 City, Goodwood.
“They remained at N1 City, Goodwood, while I drove away in the direction of Athlone.”
Kara, 40, further confessed that he was stopped by police while driving in Athlone, and they asked for his permission to search the vehicle.
“Radebe and Ngobese were also arrested, and all three men were present when police searched the truck and found the 672 bricks of cocaine concealed inside pine sheets.”
Senior State advocate Peter-John Damon told the court that the seized cocaine was not for their consumption, but for the commercial purpose of exporting and selling.
“He said the substance was highly addictive to both physical and mental health, and that the Khayelitsha Priority Crimes Court has a high frequency of offences of drug dealing.”
Ntabazalila said Kara was sentenced to 15 years imprisonment, of which seven years were suspended for five years on the condition that he was not convicted of Section 4 or 5 of the Drugs and Drug Trafficking Act 140 of 1992 during the period of suspension.
IOL News