NELSPRUIT-(MaraviPost)-A foreign national has been sentenced to 10 years direct imprisonment after being caught smuggling a military-grade mortar bomb into South Africa.
Antonio Charles Mugabe, 26, a Mozambican national was convicted by the Boschfontein Regional Court on Monday after pleading guilty to three charges of possession, transportation and importation of an explosive device.
The court heard that Mugabe was arrested on August 23 at the Lebombo Port of Entry in Komatipoort, South Africa’s busiest land border with Mozambique, during a joint screening operation by the South African Police Service and the South African Revenue Service.
Officials scanning luggage from travellers entering from Mozambique flagged a suspicious object concealed inside Mugabe’s travel bag. A search revealed a 60mm mortar bomb.
He was arrested on the spot and the case was taken over by the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation, known as the Hawks, through its Serious Organised Crime Investigation unit in Nelspruit. The matter was later transferred from the Komatipoort Magistrates’ Court to Boschfontein.
Welcoming the sentence, the provincial head of the Hawks in Mpumalanga, Major General Nico Gerber, said the interception had prevented a potentially devastating threat from reaching South African communities.
“This sentence is a decisive victory for justice and a stern warning to anyone who seeks to use our borders as conduits for dangerous weapons,” Gerber said.
“Those who engage in the illegal movement of explosives must know that the Hawks, together with our law enforcement and prosecution partners, will relentlessly pursue them,” he added.
Gerber commended the vigilance of border officials and the work of investigators and prosecutors in securing the conviction.
The Hawks said border security remains a priority amid concerns over cross-border trafficking of weapons and explosives.
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