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The Hawks in Gqeberha arrested two foreign nationals and seized abalone with an estimated value of R4.4 million.
Eastern Cape spokesperson, Warrant Officer Ndiphiwe Mhlakuvana, said the men, aged 34 and 47, were apprehended in a joint operation on Tuesday.
He said the members were acting on a tip-off about an “illegal operating plant” in Neave Township where the suspects were arrested and where they found 10,510 units of dry and wet abalone.
Mhlakuvana said the haul weighed 1061 kilograms.
He said officers also seized a variety of equipment allegedly used in the drying and processing of the abalone.
The two are due to appear in the New Brighton magistrate’s court on Monday.
The arrests were welcomed by the acting provincial head of the Hawks, Brigadier Fernando Luis.
