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Kwazulu Natal police arrested a 43-year-old man for being in the possession of Ivermectin tablets worth an estimated R100 000.
Police spokesperson, Colonel Athlenda Mathe, said he was arrested at King Shaka International Airport after arriving in the country from Dubai.
She said police found 2 464 tablets in his hand luggage.
Mathe said the arrested man will appear in court on Friday for a bail application.
"The SAPS can confirm that the said medicine is not registered with the South African Health Products Regulatory Authority," she added.
According to SAHPRA, Ivermectin is not indicated nor approved for use in humans.
"Ivermectin is a widely used drug for the treatment and control of parasites in animals and is used to treat several tropical diseases in humans not commonly seen in South Africa, as well as scabies and head lice. Ivermectin is a synthetic derivative of the antiparasitic class of compounds known as avermectins."
The SAHPRA said in South Africa Ivermectin is registered for use under Act 36 of 1947 (Department of Agriculture) for use in animals.
"Several investigators have reported that when tested in the laboratory, ivermectin inhibits replication of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2)."
"Given the current coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) pandemic, this has understandably received a lot of media attention. Thus, several clinical studies have been undertaken to evaluate ivermectin's efficacy in treating the COVID-19 infection," said SAHPRA.
