Bags of heroin, some laced with fentanyl, are displayed before a press conference regarding a major drug bust, at the office of the New York Attorney General, September 23, 2016 in New York City. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images) 
It can prove fatal – there have been assassinations.
In South Africa, turf from which to sell drugs from can cause fights among gangs and fuel vicious battles.
Given how cutthroat the drug trade is, we assume traffickers and their foot soldiers are exceptionally careful when plotting their illegal activities.
Read more: Blood ties: South Africa caught in a web of murderous, drug-smuggling Brazilian gangs
But this is not always the case.
Here are a few examples, with ties to South Africa, outlining drug deals that collapsed and that resulted in arrests and, in some cases, convictions.
Reporting by: Caryn Dolley
Filmed by: Bernard Kotze
Edited by: Malibongwe Tyilo
Produced by: Emilie Gambade
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