By BAKANG MOKOTO
October 2024- Two suspects aged between 22 and 44 respectively, were arrested by the Brits Visible Policing and Pretoria West Detectives for Contravention of Income Tax Act, 1962 (Act No. 58 of 1962), Consumer Protection Act, 2008 (Act No. 68 of 2008), Food Stuffs Cosmetics & Disinfectant Act, 1972 (Act No. 54 of 1972) Immigration Act, 2002 (Act No. 13 of 2002) and Counterfeit Goods Act, 1997 (Act No. 37 of 1997) 24 October 2024.
According to the North West police spokesperson, Birgadier Sabata Mokgwabone, the Pretoria West Detectives were following up leads after arresting a man delivering expired food stuffs he allegedly bought in Brits. Mokgwabone said they teamed up with the local Visible Policing members and proceeded to a warehouse at industrial sites, where they found the owner, a South African and his undocumented employee from Malawi.
“The pair was allegedly found manufacturing food items on three separate machines. Furthermore, the police detected boxes containing seasoning spices, which expired in July 2022. The members also discovered five x 20 Litres of expired peanut butter, as well as macaroni, pasta, spaghetti and a variety of spices.
“The owner was requested to prove the legitimacy of his business, but failed to do that. As a result, Bojanala District Municipality Health Services officials were summoned to the scene and they later confirmed that some of the products had expired and cannot be consumed,” he said.
Mokgwabone said the Local Criminal Record Centre (LCRC) processed the scene, which the District Municipality Health Services sealed for further investigation. He added that, as part of investigation, the owner’s laptop was seized.
“The suspects are expected to appear in the Brits Magistrate’s Court on 28 October 2024. The discovery comes amid an outcry regarding treatment and admission of children to hospitals in various parts of the country due to apparent poor hygiene, food handling practices and alleged unsafe production of certain counterfeit food items and suspected food poisoning,” said Mokgwabone.
Meanwhile, the Provincial Commercial Crime is investigating in conjunction with other departments and entities in accordance with the operational directives.
Meanwhile, the North West Police Commissioner, Lieutenant General Sello Kwena, welcomed the arrest. Kwena indicated that different role players under the Provincial Joint Operational and Intelligence Structure (PPROVJOINTS), with the Department of Health taking the lead, are ready to deal with issues pertaining to food safety.
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