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R34m drug ingredients: Court denies bail to woman accused of trafficking consignment
The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) in Limpopo has welcomed the Musina Magistrates’ Court’s decision to deny bail to a 41-year-old woman accused of being involved in the alleged trafficking of drug-manufacturing ingredients valued at approximately R34 million.
Nonkululeko Goodhope Khoza, who is the fourth accused in the matter, was denied bail on Tuesday after the State opposed her application. The court found that she posed a flight risk and was likely to commit further offences if released.
The case centres on an alleged cross-border drug trafficking operation in which the consignment was reportedly transported from Malawi to Johannesburg before being intercepted at the Beitbridge Port of Entry in Limpopo.
R34m consignment intercepted at Beitbridge
According to the NPA, the alleged drug ingredients were being transported on 27 May 2026 when Border Management Authority (BMA) officials stopped and searched a truck belonging to Khoza at the Beitbridge border crossing.
The consignment, allegedly worth about R34 million, was reportedly concealed inside the truck.
The interception led to a wider investigation and the arrest of additional suspects. Khoza and her co-accused, Ogbaugu Abumchukwu Victor, were arrested after three other suspects had already been taken into custody.
The earlier accused are Malawian nationals Mabuchi Dayo Kumwenda, 35, and Thandie Phiri, 26, as well as 46-year-old Zambian national Philip Chanza.
The NPA said Khoza and Victor face charges including dealing in drugs, dealing in illicit goods, money laundering and the acquisition of proceeds of defined crime. Victor also faces an additional charge relating to allegedly being in South Africa on fabricated documents.
Court finds woman a flight risk
Khoza brought her bail application by way of affidavit, seeking to be released while the case is being finalised.
The State opposed the application.
In refusing bail, the court found that Khoza presented a flight risk and was likely to commit further offences if released. The court also considered allegations that she had attempted to bribe a police official.
The court ultimately found that Khoza had failed to demonstrate that the interests of justice permitted her release on bail.
The ruling means she will remain in custody while the investigation continues.
NPA welcomes bail denial
Limpopo NPA spokesperson Mashudu Malabi welcomed the ruling, saying the decision was important in ensuring that serious allegations involving organised crime are properly dealt with through the courts.
“The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) in Limpopo welcomes the ruling handed down by the Musina Magistrates’ Court today, which denied bail to Nonkululeko Goodhope Khoza (41), Accused 4 in a matter involving the alleged trafficking of drug ingredients valued at approximately R34 million,” Malabi said.
She added that the suspects were allegedly transporting the consignment from Malawi to Johannesburg when BMA officials intercepted the truck at Beitbridge.
“The consignment was reportedly concealed in a truck belonging to Khoza,” she said.
The NPA said the successful opposition to bail demonstrated its commitment to prosecuting people accused of serious offences and protecting the integrity of the criminal justice system.
“The successful opposition to bail underscores the NPA’s commitment to ensuring that individuals accused of serious offences are brought before the courts and that the integrity of the criminal justice system is upheld,” Malabi said.
Case returns to court
The NPA also commended the BMA and the investigating team for intercepting the alleged consignment and pursuing the subsequent investigation.
The authority said it remained committed to working with law enforcement agencies to combat drug trafficking and organised crime, particularly criminal networks operating across borders.
The case has been postponed to 27 August 2026 for further investigation and to deal with the bail applications of the remaining accused.
The accused remain presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
Economy
Vegetables disappear from South African plates when winter hits
As temperatures drop, breakfasts become toast instead of tomatoes, lunches lean towards bread and soup, and hearty dinners replace lighter meals. It’s an entirely human response to winter, but one that can leave vegetables falling further down the shopping list.
Every winter, South Africans naturally gravitate towards warm, comforting meals, but in the process, vegetables are often the first thing to disappear from the plate. Tenderstem® broccoli believes the solution isn’t convincing people to abandon comfort food but making it easier to build vegetables into the meals they’re already cooking. Convenience is the real fix: making the healthy choice the easy one. It is the thinking behind an approach that encourages South Africans to include quick-cooking vegetables such as Tenderstem® broccoli, which needs only a few minutes to prepare and can be added straight into meals already on the stove, rather than requiring a separate dish of their own.
Cold weather tends to draw us towards warm, filling foods, with bread, pasta and other carbohydrate-heavy favourites often becoming the easiest choice. The problem is not the comfort food. It is what gets pushed aside to make room for it.
The nutritional data reflects this pattern. According to South Africa’s National Nutrition Week, adults in this country already consume an average of around 230g of fruit and vegetables daily, which is just 58% of the internationally recommended 400g intake. That is the baseline in any season. In winter, when lighter meals feel less appealing and hot, filling food becomes the natural choice, vegetables can become even easier to overlook.
Diets low in fruit and vegetables are associated with a greater risk of non-communicable diseases, including type 2 diabetes, hypertension and cardiovascular disease. Winter also coincides with South Africa’s flu season, making a varied diet especially relevant. Vitamin C and folate both contribute to normal immune function and can be found in a range of fresh vegetables.
The answer does not require complicated dietary changes or extra time in the kitchen. It starts with building greens into the meals people are already eating.
Start the week differently
One practical way to improve winter nutrition is to remove the daily decision. A vegetable egg bake or frittata, prepared on a Sunday evening and portioned into the fridge, provides a filling breakfast containing protein, vegetables and fibre for several days. On a cold weekday morning, having something ready to reheat makes the nutritious choice the convenient one.
Brassica greens work particularly well in this format because they hold their texture when baked and release less water than softer vegetables such as courgette or spinach. Tenderstem® broccoli can be added whole, requires no trimming and is edible from floret to stem. Fold a generous handful into whisked eggs, add cheese if desired and bake at 180°C for 20 to 25 minutes. Once portioned, it can be reheated in minutes.
It also answers a familiar winter problem. Breakfast often defaults to buttered toast, cereal or a rusk when the weather is cold and time is short. Preparing a vegetable-based protein option in advance changes that routine without adding pressure to the morning.
Add to what you already cook
Quick-cooking green vegetables can be added to soups, curries and lentil dishes in the final few minutes of cooking, making them an easy part of familiar winter meals.
The key is to choose a vegetable that holds its texture, works with robust flavours and requires little preparation. Tenderstem® broccoli cooks in three to five minutes and can be used from floret to stem. Add it to a butter chicken or lamb curry shortly before serving, stir it through soup or place it in a roasting tray with the roast for the final ten minutes of cooking. Even a grilled cheese sandwich can make room for a few green stems.
Each option fits into a meal that is already being prepared, without requiring a separate dish or additional washing up. An 80g serving counts as one of your five-a-day and is high in vitamin C and folate, which contribute to normal immune function. It also provides fibre, potassium and vitamin B6. “People do not stop caring about nutrition in winter. They choose food that feels warm, filling and manageable. The easiest way to keep vegetables on the menu is to build them into those familiar meals rather than treating them as a separate side dish,” explains Elise Ruddle, Chef and Nutritionist, South African brand representative for Tenderstem®.
Winter eating does not need to become a contest between comfort and nutrition. The more realistic answer is to make vegetables part of the comfort food itself. When greens belong in the curry, soup, breakfast bake or toasted sandwich, eating them no longer depends on anyone feeling virtuous.
