Teens in trouble

Mellissa* was a champion show jumper, representing South Africa in competitions. At 15-years old, she had what she describes as a “normal” life. Coming from a middle to upper-class home, she and her sisters wanted for nothing. 

Then she discovered marijuana through her friends, while hanging out at shopping malls on a Saturday. Soon Melissa was being admitted into clubs with the same underage friends. It was a downward spiral from there. She ran away from home and moved in with a woman, alleged to be a drug dealer, and her 15 year old son, who allegedly supplied her with drugs. 

From marijuana, Mellissa moved on to harder drugs like Ecstasy and Cocaine. All the while, she partied at some of Durban’s most popular nightclubs. The only problem was: Mellissa was still a minor and bouncers at these clubs were allowing her entrance despite her age. 

According to Mellissa, Durban nightclubs are full of underage teenagers. She alleges that club management and even the police know this is so, but do nothing about it. In fact Mellissa goes as far as alleging that police call ahead to club management and warn them about raids, and this is the reason so few arrests are made. 

Colonel Jay Naicker, spokesman for the South African Police Services, says this is absolutely not so. He says police precincts operate their own stings, often in conjunction with organised crime and the narcotics unit of the Flying Squad. He says SAPS relies on intelligence from the public in these matters and will investigate any leads they get. 

In the absence of this intelligence, teenagers like Mellissa continue to gain entrance into clubs and have access to alcohol and drugs, which Mellissa alleges is very easy to get. 

Melissa’s mother arranged an anonymous “drug buy” from her own daughter and organised a police sting to retrieve her teenage daughter from the clutches of this life. That was 8 weeks ago. Mellissa has been through rehab and is well on her way to recovery. 

*Not her real name

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