JOHANNESBURG - Fifteen members of a South African Airways crew were arrested at London's Heathrow airport on Monday after officers from the UK Border Agency (UKBA) discovered five kilos of cocaine in a piece of crew member's baggage. The estimated street value of the haul is some £250,000.

SAA spokeswoman Robyn Chalmers confirmed that three cockpit and 12 cabin crew members operating flight SA234 from Johannesburg to London were detained by British authorities "after contraband was found in the crew bus at Heathrow Airport."

Bob Gaiger, HM Revenue & Customs Heathrow spokesman said in a statement: "Crew members are subject to the same customs checks as any other person when entering the UK. Those arrested are now being held in custody and will be interviewed by HMRC investigation officers. HMRC together with UKBA play a vital role in the fight to prevent illegal drugs from entering the UK and in protecting our communities from the violence and corruption that always accompany this hideous trade."

This is the second time in under a month that the SAA crew on flight SA 234 have been detained after drugs were found in their baggage. On Tuesday January 20 this year fifteen crew members were arrested at Heathrow after customs officials found 50 kilos of cannabis (dagga) and four kilos of cocaine in three pieces of baggage. British customs officials were unable to identify which individuals the baggage belonged to and the crew were released on unconditional bail and ordered to report back to Heathrow Police Station on March 23. A security guard working for Reshebile Aviation & Protection Services and a cabin crew member were subsequently arrested in Johannesburg in relation to the bust.

Chalmers said on Monday that following these arrests, "SAA tightened existing security measures including changing security systems, physical searches of bags and using dogs airside. Following today's incident the airline is again co-operating fully with the British authorities in an investigation that is currently under way. An investigation in Johannesburg, involving SAA Aviation Security and the SAPS Crime Intelligence Unit, is also under way and the two parties are working closely together to further improve current detection systems."

"SAA remains committed to a zero tolerance approach towards the use of the airline's services for any criminal activity and will continue to closely monitor the situation going forward," she said in a statement.

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