POLICE RAID DRUG HOTSPOTS

Senior police officials swopped office jobs for active policing in an
effort to "take back the streets" in an intelligence operation involving
more than 60 uniformed and plainclothes police over the weekend.

During the six-hour operation several homes and drug dens were targeted.

At the forefront of the operation were police informants who revealed the
much-needed information used to conduct an operation of this magnitude.

The raid, spearheaded by the Area Commissioner for Durban South, Raj
Ramsaroop, concentrated on suspected drug peddlers, money launderers and
people in possession of unlicensed weapons.

Criminals were caught off-guard as they went about their usual Friday night
business.

Umlazi's infamous V-section was first hit and three men aged 24, 26 and 28
were arrested for dealing in dagga. White powder resembling mandrax was
also confiscated and sent for testing.

The police faced resistance when they attempted to raid a
heavily-barricaded home in Umlazi G-Section. By the time they got in the
suspected dealers had apparently had ample time to flush the drugs down the
toilet. "The suspects seemed to have had a contingency plan in which they
effectively disposed of the drugs in a short space of time, using the
oldest trick in the book," said police spokeswoman Danelia Veldhuizen.

Police raids in an area like Umlazi were sometimes made ineffective because
the suspects had cellphones and alerted one another, she added.

The infamous Block 240 flats in Bayview, Chatsworth, were hit next.

Though police were careful not to alert suspected dealers, big bolts and
locks guarding the homes prevented immediate access to the premises.

Between the time police approached the homes to the time entry was gained,
the drugs disappeared.

"You hear the toilet flushing, and there's not much you can do but wait to
enter the house," Veldhuizen said.

"As per the Criminal Procedure act we can't break the gates that block
entry, as this has serious legal repercussions for police," she added.
"This is one of the reasons we have our legal team on hand during raids, so
if there's a judgment call to be made it is an informed one."

Police also raided the Basement Nightclub, now called Boyz Two Men, in
Silverglen.

The owner was forced to close down because he did not have a proper liquor
licence needed for a full bar.

Alcohol to the value of R5 000 was confiscated. The owner was fined R2 000.