On Sunday, a 30-year-old Namibian woman was arrested at Oliver Tambo International Airport on suspicion of being a drug mule. In the past two months, 10 alleged drug mules have been arrested, including a woman travelling from São Paulo. Police say she ingested an undisclosed number of cocaine tablets, was transported to the hospital, given medication, after which she ejected more than 60 pellets of suspected cocaine.

Listen to this article 5 min Listen to this article 5 min Now the police are investigating to determine who the woman worked with in South Africa, São Paulo, or Namibia, and if she was part of a larger syndicate.

Brigadier Athlenda Mathe, the national police spokesperson, said in a statement that South African Police Service (SAPS), South African Revenue Service (Sars) customs, and immigration officials followed up on SAPS intelligence of a drug mule arriving from São Paulo.

Mathe added that the team immediately apprehended the alleged drug mule as she was making her way through immigration. She was then arrested and taken to a nearby hospital, where a medical X-ray confirmed and revealed foreign objects in her stomach.

"The process to release the suspected drugs from her body is under way. She has already released more than 60 pellets of suspected cocaine thus far. She is currently under police guard and custody.

"This process could take a day or two because we need to ensure all the drugs are out of her system. She will be given another X-ray to ensure that all the drugs have been ejected out of her system," the national police spokesperson said.

Mathe...