JOHANNESBURG - A series of crystal meth laboratories uncovered on remote farms in South Africa is raising questions about the country’s growing role in the production and trafficking of synthetic drugs.
Police uncovered the latest suspected lab during an overnight raid on a farm about 200 kilometres north of Johannesburg, after residents reported suspicious activity and a strong, unpleasant smell.
A 62-year-old man who was renting the property was arrested.
Police say they found equipment and materials believed to have been used to manufacture crystal methamphetamine.
North West police chief Arthur Peter Adams says investigators also found expensive equipment, including recently purchased washing machines.
“That is an indication that whoever is funding this is a person with very deep pockets,” Adams said.
The latest operation is the third suspected crystal meth laboratory police have uncovered in less than four months.
In May, police raided a remote farm northwest of Johannesburg, uncovering what they described as a multi-million-dollar methamphetamine laboratory.
Eleven suspects were arrested, including four Mexican nationals who police suspected of having links to Latin American drug cartels.
Then, in August, another crystal meth laboratory was uncovered near the Zimbabwean border, with several foreign nationals, including two Mexicans, arrested.
READ: Two Mexicans arrested in SA as police bust major drug lab
The repeated discoveries are shining a spotlight on the use of isolated properties for sophisticated drug manufacturing operations.
Police have not disclosed whether the three operations are directly linked, but the arrests of foreign nationals in previous raids have raised questions about the possible involvement of international criminal networks.
A 2025 report by the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organised Crime highlighted South Africa’s growing importance in international methamphetamine trafficking.
The organisation said laboratories in the country supply international markets, including Australia and New Zealand, where demand for cocaine and methamphetamine is high and retail prices are among the highest globally.
It also pointed to established trade links between South Africa and Australia as a factor that could contribute to the growth of the trafficking route.
For communities living near remote farms, the latest bust also highlights the role residents can play in identifying suspicious activity.
In this case, it was reports of unusual activity and a strong smell that helped put police on the trail of the suspected laboratory.
- Additional reporting AFP