Illicit alcohol worth millions found in South Africa warehouse

The discovery of millions of rand in wine has been found in a warehouse in South Africa by law enforcement.

The wine was found after an operation into the manufacturing of counterfeit alcohol in Verulam, which is in the Kwazulu-Nata province of South Africa.

Local government politician Siboniso Duma said that the KZN Liquor Authority in the region worked with police and the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development in discovering the illegal alcohol facility.

According to Duma, the illicit alcohol was cost the South African government around R11.3bn in lost tax revenue, and that such activity was often undertaken by criminals on goods which are highly-taxed, such as tobacco and alcohol.

He said that empty bottles of Smirnoff and Red L vodka were found on the premises and that the total value of the products could have reached R5m. Due to the region having busy ports and bordering Mozambique, Swaziland, and Lesotho, the area was vulnerable to such activities, he said.

Duma told news site Independent Online: “Based on the intelligence gathered, the owner of the ethanol is a ruthless kingpin who is supplying a syndicate behind the manufacturing of fake alcohol products.

“As we stated in the past, we remain worried about potential job losses and the health risks posed to unsuspecting consumers.

“Counterfeit alcohol can cause permanent blindness. Other health risks include nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, drowsiness and dizziness.”

Spokesperson for eThekwini District SAPS Captain Carmen Rhynes added that the Economic Infrastructure Task Team (EITT) raided the distillery after identifying it behind the cover of being a shop fitting services.

Rhynes said the task team arrested a 64 year old male and seized 12,000 litres of ethanol chemicals, which themselves had a value of R1 million.