Five suspects are due to appear in the Gqeberha Magistrate’s Court tomorrow, 26 June 2026, after being arrested in connection with an illegal abalone operation involving more than R1.5 million worth of the highly sought-after marine resource.

The suspects, aged between 20 and 36, were arrested yesterday during a high-profile joint operation involving the Hawks’ Economic Protected Resources (EPR) unit in Bellville, the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE), Crime Intelligence in Motherwell, and SAPS Mount Road.

Authorities seized 4,513 units of abalone, valued at approximately R1.56 million, after acting on information about a suspected illegal processing site at a house along Marcon Road in Gqeberha.

Provincial Head of the Hawks in the Western Cape, Major General Mathipa Makgato, welcomed the arrests, saying abalone is strictly regulated under South Africa’s Marine Living Resources Act.

“Operating an abalone drying or processing facility without a permit constitutes a serious offence, often leading to charges of illegal possession, processing, and dealing in protected marine resources.”

Also read: Two Operations, Hundreds of Illegal Marine Products Seized