Drug dealers target primary pupils
Lesedi Mkhutshwa | Friday April 9, 2021 18:07
Speaking to this publication, Letlhakane station commander, Superintendent Michael Maphephu said that they are concerned about a growing trend of people pretending to be street vendors yet sell drugs especially dagga in front of primary schools’ gates.
He said that the culprits are suspected to be selling dagga to students during break time and at lunch hour.
Maphephu stated that some of the students are pawns in the game as they are allegedly made to distribute the dagga both in the school environment and at home.
In addition, he said so far they have arrested two separate groups of men on Tuesday in connection with the matter.
Maphephu explained that on the same day during break time they caught red-handed a 20-year-old man with eight sachets of a dry green-like stuff suspected to be marijuana in his tuckshop opposite a primary school gate.
He added that the young man was about to sell the sachets to two teenagers aged 15 and 16 at the same spot who are suspected to be students at a local junior secondary school.
On a similar matter, on the same day, the station commander further said that they arrested three men aged 24, 25 and 33 years who were found in illegal possession of marijuana at another tuckshop near Supang Primary School entrance.
He said that they arrested the five men involved in both incidents after a police tip-off from concerned parents.
Maphephu said that the concerned villagers filed a police tip-off indicating that there are some street vendors who pretend to be selling fat cakes and other commodities to primary students whereas they are selling dagga.
He revealed that such culprits use their street vending business as a cover up for their illegal trade in marijuana adding that as such they are already ruining the future of the children by making them a part of their despicable crimes.
The police chief therefore said that in order to arrest the situation they are going to embark on a drug patrol at the school gates and search all the vendors so that such criminals can be taken to task.
Maphephu pleaded with the community to report such illegal incidents so that the culprits could be dealt with through the law.
He also encouraged parents to take care of their children and inform them on the dangers of using drugs and how to resist the pressure of their peers to use them.