Four arrested after suspected Mandrax laboratory uncovered in Soweto

Four suspects aged between 21 and 25 have been arrested after Gauteng Organised Crime Investigations uncovered a suspected Mandrax laboratory in Meadowlands, Zone 10, Soweto. Police remained at the scene on Friday as investigations continued. Neighbours, who asked not to be identified, told Newsnote that the landlords’ children were allegedly operating the suspected drug laboratory at the property.

They claimed the operation had been running for some time. Gauteng police spokesperson Brigadier Brenda Muridili confirmed the arrests, saying the suspects were allegedly found manufacturing Mandrax tablets. Muridili said police could not yet confirm the quantity of drugs recovered or their street value, as crime scene management officials had only just arrived to process the scene.

“At this stage, our Local Criminal Record Centre (LCRC), which handles criminal records and crime scene management, has just arrived. When members from organised crime arrive, they are not supposed to touch anything,” she said. “I have seen about three bags of fully developed Mandrax tablets.

There is also a setup at the back where you can see the materials, products and chemicals used. For now, I cannot give the quantity.” Muridili said the operation followed information received by police on Friday that drugs might be moved from the property. “Today, they also got information that drugs may be moved, so they swooped in and found suspects manufacturing [the drugs].

They later arrested the fourth suspect,” she said. The arrests come a week after five suspects were arrested in connection with another suspected drug laboratory in the Krugersdorp area. Drugs allegedly being manufactured at that facility were estimated to have a street value of R100 million.