9 foreign nationals arrested in Westonaria for manufacturing illicit alcohol
Police pounced on the warehouse on Thursday morning, where they uncovered fake alcohol to the value of approximately R1 million being manufactured and bottled.
Picture: Pexels
JOHANNESBURG - Nine foreign nationals have been arrested following a bust at an illegal alcohol manufacturing facility in Westonaria on the West Rand.
Police pounced on the warehouse on Thursday morning, where they uncovered fake alcohol to the value of approximately R1 million being manufactured and bottled.
Popular whiskey, brandy and vodka brands were being illegally manufactured and stored.
Two Taiwanese, six Malawians and one Mozambican national were arrested at an illicit alcohol manufacturing warehouse in Westonaria on the West Rand on Thursday morning.
Gauteng provincial police commissioner, Tommy Mthombeni, outlined some of the fake alcohol products they found.
"You can see here it’s your Smirnoff, your J&B and your Klipdrift."
He said they received a tip-off about the facility from aggrieved employees.
"The employees came forward to SAPS [South African Police Service]. You can see they were not happy. We will also, through the prosecution, put forward charges of kidnapping."
This is the second bust in Westonaria in less than a week.
Last week, police made a R10 million drug bust at a lab in the area.