Cape Town - Police in the Eastern Cape have arrested a 38-year-old suspect and confiscated abalone with an approximate street value of R3.7 million.
In a statement released on Friday, provincial police spokesperson Colonel Priscilla Naidu said the suspect is expected to appear in court soon on charges of contravening the Marine Living Resources Act 19 of 1998 for the illegal possession of abalone.
Naidu said that at about 2.30pm on Thursday, officers acted on information received and executed a search warrant at a house in Schauder Avenue in Holland Park.
She said police seized 140 plastic bags containing frozen de-shelled abalone which weighed 1 400kg, 13 plastic bags containing dried abalone weighing 233.88kg, five deep freezers, a scale and a cellphone.
Naidu said the abalone was handed over to the Department of Sea Fisheries for storage.
In a separate incident, a home invader was caught red-handed by the homeowner while ransacking his storeroom and stealing tools at a Jeffreys Bay home on Friday morning.
Police said that at about 3.30am, the homeowner in Dolfyn Street in Pellsrus alleged he was sleeping when he was woken by a noise coming from his storeroom.
The homeowner told police he then peeped through the window and saw someone inside his storeroom.
The homeowner tip-toed around the house and caught the suspect while he was busy removing tools from the storeroom.
Upon further investigation, a plastic bag with plumbing tools was found outside the yard.
The 31-year-old suspect was arrested and is expected to appear in the Humansdorp Magistrate’s Court soon on charges of housebreaking and theft.
African News Agency (ANA)