Two Malawian businesswomen appeared before the Bail and Remand Court (BRC) in Port Louis this Saturday morning, July 30. They are facing a provisional charge of drug importation. They had arrived in Mauritius on the evening of Saturday July 16 from Johannesburg, South Africa. Foreign bodies were found in their intestines after they were scanned. Victoria Sitolo Mwale, 39 years old and Mercy Fatima Mandala, 30 years old were respectively carrying sixty-eight pellets of heroin and forty-four pellets of heroin, a total of 1,559.5 grams of the drug. The market value of the latter is Rs 23 392 500.
The two Malawians arrived in Mauritius by Air Mauritius MK 852 at about 8.15 pm on the evening of July 16. They were subjected to a body search by elements of the Custom Anti-Narcotics Section (Cans) of the Mauritius Revenue Authority. However, no prohibited articles were found on them or in their luggage. Thus, they were subjected to a body scan. This one revealed the presence of foreign bodies in their intestines.
On the morning of Sunday, July 17, they served thirteen and ten heroin pellets respectively in the drug loo in the body scanner room located in the customs arrival room. The two arrested suspects were delivered into the hands of police officers from the Anti-Drug and Smuggling Unit (Adsu) at the airport. The police officers were to seize from Fatima Mandala the sum of one thousand U.S. dollars and two cell phones. Victoria Mwale was found in possession of nine hundred U.S. dollars and a cell phone.
The two Malawians were taken to Jawaharlall Nehru Hospital in Rose-Belle where they were kept for observation. In the late afternoon of Thursday, July 29, they were discharged after serving sixty-eight (942.2 grams) and forty-four (617.3 grams) pellets of heroin respectively.
The Adsu of the airport has initiated an investigation to trace the sponsor of this drug shipment.
