The thin camouflage line of SA National Defence Force (SANDF) soldiers patrolling all seven South African land borders under Operation Corona in July intercepted, among others, smugglers laden with millions of rands worth of drugs and other contraband.

Statistics provided by the SANDF for 1-31 July indicate R1.88 million worth of drugs were seized on South Africa’s borders, but it appears a massive R5.8 million dagga confiscation by 8 SA Infantry (SAI) Battalion on the Eswatini/South Africa border on 31 July missed last month’s statistics. Soldiers discovered 28 apparently abandoned bags of dagga in a substantial haul.

Contraband worth R5 million was last month confiscated by the 15 military companies on border patrol, drawn mainly from the regular and reserve components of the SA Army Infantry Formation supported by the Armour Formation, in the form of Tempe based 1 Special Services Battalion (SSB).

Soldiers were busiest on the Limpopo/Zimbabwe border regarding contraband, netting R4.3 million worth of items presumed to be cigarettes, liquor, pharmaceuticals, branded fake clothing and footwear, amongst others.

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