BY NOKUTHABA DLAMINI
A Victoria Falls safari camp manager who was allegedly found with a huge stash of illegal drugs and equipment to produce the narcotics will go on trial on December 15.
Cornelious Smit (62) of Mabalengwe Safaris was arrested last month on charges of Contravening Section 5 of the Harmful Liquids Act Chapter 9:10 “Manufacturing of harmful liquids and unlawful possession of cannabis oil and dagga”
He was not asked to plead to the charges by the Victoria Falls resident magistrate Lindiwe Maphosa.
Smit’s trial failed to take off after police’s Criminal Investigations Department did to produce the results of the alleged substances that were taken to their laboratories in Harare for testing.
In court, his lawyer Njabulo Ndlovu of Ncube Attorneys argued that his client should be set on free remand as his trial has not taken off in over seven weeks.
But Victoria Falls head prosecutor Bheki Tshabalala told the court that they had communicated with police and they have indicated that the substances will be taken to the laboratory any time.
He said the delays were caused by lack of resources and backlog a at the laboratory.
Maphosa on Friday consented to prosecutors’ request to postpone the case to December 15.
Prosecutors say on October 7 at around 12PM, police received a tip-off that Smit was in possession of dangerous drugs at his residence.
A warrant of search and seizure was obtained from the Victoria Falls magistrate court and on the same day, the Victoria Falls district team of Criminal Investigations Department and Narcotics, Support Unit and Canine led by Assistant Inspector Tavengwa raided Smit’s house.
The team recovered a 25 litre container with two litres of ethanol for processing cannabis, one axe with wooden handle, two by 20 litres distilling containers for harmful liquids, one condenser steel spirits serial number 65821, 20 litre electrical cane, two by five millilitres (processed cannabis oil, 610 millilitres cannabis oil, 100 millilitres imonnelo oil for processing cannabis, 10 litre harmful liquid, two plastic tubes and raw dagga weighing 6.7 kilogrammes.
Police records also showed that Smit was also found in possession of 18 litres of illicit beer called Kachasu leading to his arrest.
He is out on $50 000 bail.