Illegal alcohol trade booms despite ban
Lesedi Mkhutshwa | Friday February 12, 2021 16:45
FRANCISTOWN: The national alcohol ban has apparently ignited a rampant rise in illicit alcohol trade that has given rise to a thriving black market sales to unprecedented levels.
Over and above searching for inter-zonal permits at the search points, the police and their army counterparts have strengthened the search for illegal possession of alcohol contrabands smuggled across the neighbouring borders.
Evidence is galore that there is a free flow of illegal alcohol beverages in the country to quench the thirst of beer guzzlers. For instance, Sese check point which lies about 90 kms south of the city of Francistown along the A1 Highway has witnessed an unprecedented rise in incidents of illegal possession of alcohol beverages transported across the Greater Francistown zone into the Greater Palapye zone and beyond.
The police have also noticed that the brands of alcohol they intercepted from illegal transporters and traders are very unfamiliar. Serule station commander who also polices Sese area told Mmegi this week that the cases of people found with illegal possession of alcohol during the ban have been rising.
Just last Sunday, two Zimbabwean males were nabbed at the search point where they had in their possession 400 bottles of King Stallion Whiskey which is suspected to be from the neighbouring Zimbabwe. They were for sometime paraded on the island by the check point with their illegal haul.
The final destinations for the contraband with an estimated market value of about P100, 000 was Palapye, Mahalapye and Gaborone. “The two gentlemen we suspect are apparently suppliers who smuggle alcohol across the border to meet the demands of some people just across the country,” explained Serule station commander, Superintendent Reboeleng Serumola.
To perhaps show the gravity of the illegal alcohol trade, Serule police working on a tip-off were recently able to search and arrest a Gaborone-bound truck which was loaded with over 2, 000 bottles of liquor beverages bearing the same product names of King Stallion with an estimated market value of about P200, 000. The journey of the truck apparently started off at Tatisiding where a concerned member of the public suspected it was carrying contraband as it was loaded at awkward times. “The truck is currently impounded at the Botswana Unified Revenue Services (BURS). We were forced to rope the BURS into our stealth operations as it’s apparent that illicit dealers evade tax,’ stressed Serumola emphasising their concern.
The police have said that all indications show that illicit alcohol trade is thriving in the black market. The police have appealed to the public to continue giving them information that will help them nab criminals.
The police are also working overtime to establish where all these unusual alcohol brands originate and their actual source so to nip it in the bud. By Wednesday this week, Serule police had arrested and charged about 11 people (nine Batswana and two foreigners) involved in the illegal alcohol trade during the ban. At the time of going to press, the police could not provide a total value of smuggled alcohol and the quantity. Serumola was also worried that Batswana have a tendency of not respecting the laws of their country as shown by the alcohol ban where people go all the way to illegally import alcohol to trade during the ban. “We are on high alert to combat the illegal trade that is seriously spiralling out of control. We also want to thank responsible citizens who continue to give us tips on what they see happening around them,” she said. Five people were recently charged for brewing various traditional concoctions for sale.
In Francistown, Officer Commanding No.15 police district senior superintendent Kabo Badirwang said that there was a growing concern of smuggling of alcohol in their policing area since the alcohol ban. Already, Francistown police are worried that they were dealing with an illicit trade which has already hit a market value of about P587, 120. No:15 officer commanding covers Francistown police,Tshesebe,Masunga,Nata,Tutume and Sua.
He further said that since January 1 to January 8, 2021 they have recorded so many cases of alcohol smuggling from different villages located near the Botswana-Zimbabwe borderline such as Tshesebe. Badirwang said that they have confiscated different kinds of gins, whiskey and brandy such as Gordon Gin, Cheteau Brandy, Jameson Whiskey, King Stallion Brandy, Gold Blend Whiskey and Heineken Lager to mention only a few despite the alcohol ban.
He also stated that in the same period, they have seized 4, 171 different brandies and whiskies from in bottles of sizes between 200ml, 350ml and 750ml . He said that they made numerous arrests along the border and by Bisoli veterinary gate. Badirwang added that this month they seized another batch adding up to 4, 047 of different brands of brandy and whiskies such as Two Keys whiskey and Star Brandy, amongst others.
He said that on a daily basis in their policing area, they record three to four cases of alcohol smuggling and illegal sales. He said there was a day in the beginning of this month where they managed seized 3, 005 variety of King Stallion brandy bottles. No:15 officer commanding admitted that Francistown was the nerve centre of the illegal activity as alcohol is distributed to different places from here (Francistown).
He added : “We have received reports from different police stations from as far as Serowe indicating that Francistown was the hub, the distribution centre of illegal alcohol to different areas of the country. But surprisingly, we don’t have any alcohol factory here which proves that the alcohol is smuggled from neighbouring somewhere else.” He further said that most of the alcohol smugglers are Batswana and non-citizens who are residents of Botswana. He added that the residents often use their relatives in Zimbabwe to supply them with alcohol using ungazzeted points of entry so that they can be the main suppliers in Botswana. Badirwang said the illegal sale of alcohol proves that indeed the market was lucrative in Botswana and that Batswana valued alcohol more than their lives.
He also said that the police in partnership with the tax agency, or BURS, were working tirelessly through patrols along the border to arrest the situation. He added that there was a penalty for smuggling alcohol and those caught on the wrong side of the law are liable to a fine not less than P5, 000. Badirwang also warned liquor store owners who broke the law by selling alcohol illegally to the community. He also spoke about the rise in illegal brewing of traditional concoctions in some areas in his policing area.
Tonota police station commander, Superintendent Oteng Ngada was also concerned about the alarming rate of alcohol sales in his policing area despite the ban. He said that they have arrested three individuals during this week who were caught red-handed with alcohol despite the ban. He said that even though the suspects were caught at different locations drinking Gold Blend (750)ml whiskey, they did not manage to find the source or their supplier. Ngada said that it was alleged that the suppliers or sources were located in Francistown. Letlhakane station commander, Superintendent Michael Maphephu was also troubled by alcohol that is inundating his policing area despite the ban.
He also indicated that there was a new trend in which people smuggled alcohol from Francistown using public transport. He shared that last week they arrested two male suspects alleged to have smuggled alcohol from Francistown using public transport. Maphephu said that different brands of whiskey were seized from a bus at one of the local veterinary gates during a police search. He said at the same police road block during a search, they managed to seize 36 bottles of Two Keys whiskey (375ml) and six bottles of Gold Blend whiskey (750ml).