Upington – A house in Upington used as a drug den for years has been demolished as two drug dealers were sentenced to lengthy jail terms this past week, the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (Hawks) in the Northern Cape said on Sunday.
The house at 10 Carlton Street had gained notoriety as one of the worst havens for drug addicts and dealers, and was demolished on Friday following a ruling by the Upington Magistrate's Court, when two people using the house were jailed for a combined 57 years, Hawks spokesperson Nomthandazo Mnisi said.
Uzuma Uka Phillip Chinedu, 37, and Izuchukwu Johnson Obi, 37, were convicted and sentenced on charges of racketeering and drug dealing, among others.
They were arrested in March 2017 by the Hawks serious organised crime investigation unit during a project-driven investigation aimed at addressing drug dealing in the Upington area.
They were involved in selling and distributing drugs transported from Gauteng to Upington.
On Friday, Chinedu was found guilty and sentenced to nine years for racketeering, 15 years for dealing in drugs, 15 years for corrupt activities, and a year for being in the county illegally. He was effectively sentenced to spend 40 years in jail.
Obi was found guilty and sentenced to six years for racketeering, 10 years for dealing in drugs and a year for being in the country illegally, a total of 17 years in prison, Mnisi said.
Northern Cape Hawks head Maj-Gen Kholekile Galawe applauded the team for the outstanding work and their persistence in fighting drug crimes in the province.
“That house was a magnet for bad elements. Both the demolition and the sentence of the two is testament to the commitment of the Hawks to removing those responsible for selling and distributing drugs to our communities,” he said