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All case files · Case file 02

The region’s largest recorded seizure

Tanzania · 12–22 December 2023

The record

Where
Tanzania
When
12–22 December 2023
Quantity
2 844 kg
  • 1 488 kg methamphetamine
  • 1 356 kg heroin
Value
R931 918 824$51 773 268
Agencies
TPF · DCEA
Map of the Southern Route: from the Makran coast across the Indian Ocean to Tanzania and Mozambique, then by road and air into South Africa; the Atlantic cocaine vector; the outbound air vector to West Africa.The Lebombo corridor file — Badplaas, Mpumalanga, South Africa, 16 July 2023The region’s largest recorded seizure — Tanzania, 12–22 December 2023The Limpopo intercept — Limpopo, South Africa, 1 January 2024The Vilankulo seizure — Vilankulo, Mozambique, 5 March 2024The Delmas load — Delmas, South Africa, 10 October 2024The Beira landfall — Beira, Mozambique, 21 February 2025The false compartment — Lomahasha Border Post, Eswatini, 17–18 July 2025The outbound vector — Lagos, Nigeria — shipped from OR Tambo International Airport, South Africa, February 2024TPC headquarters — MaputoTANZANIAMOZAMBIQUESOUTH AFRICAMAKRAN COAST
On the route: Tanzania

Five beats

How the case moved

The five beats of the public narrative. Agencies named; persons never.

  1. The TPC convenes

    Intelligence sharing with the DCEA runs through the cell.

  2. Intelligence shared

    The Tanzanian coast is the Southern Route’s first landfall; the picture is shared across the three states.

  3. Movement tracked

    Consignments of methamphetamine and heroin are tracked ashore.

  4. Interdiction

    12–22 December 2023: the DCEA seizes 1 488 kg of methamphetamine and 1 356 kg of heroin — the region’s largest recorded seizure.

  5. The network followed

    The picture left by this seizure produces the Limpopo follow-up on 1 January 2024.

Outcome

2 844 kg off the market in a single operation, valued at R931 918 824.

Gallery

Evidence

From the TPC’s public presentation. Faces are pixelated; plates, documents and signage are blurred. The redaction is the message.

  • Bricks of seized methamphetamine and heroin stacked on the floor, Tanzania, December 2023
  • A second view of the stacked bricks from the December 2023 seizure in Tanzania
  • Details withheld
    Sacks of seized narcotics stacked in a room in Tanzania; the officer present is pixelated

Next step

The network behind the record

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