Africa Wild

ABALONE WARS

Poaching taken over by organised crime syndicates: Poor policing makes it worse

By Noah Tobias• 17 October 2019


An influx of organised crime, concentrating on abalone poaching, has terrified Overstrand residents and put local police to the test. (Photo: Yunus Mohamed / Gallo)

Abalone poaching is out of control in the Overstrand, says Western Cape Police Ombud Johan Brand. His report on Thursday to the Western Cape Legislature’s Committee on Community Safety, tells a complex tale of organised crime, increasing violence and systemically broken policing.

Abalone, known colloquially as perlemoen, are large molluscs, highly favoured in restaurants across Asia. Abalone poaching, which has exploded in recent years, is responsible for the loss of an estimated R628-million a year, if it were fished as a legal commodity. Western Cape Police Ombud Johan Brand’s report observes that, at one point, there were 300 boats on the water in Gansbaai, illegally harvesting the most threatened and smuggled marine species in South Africa.

“Abalone poaching in the Overstrand is mainly driven by syndicates or organised criminal networks,” Brand told the committee. “In fact, the 28s (gang) have deployed a well-known gangster in that area to run the abalone poaching syndicate.” This new influx of organised crime has terrified residents and put local cops to the test.


Members of the Western Cape Legislature’s Committee for Community Safety discuss the ombudsman’s findings. (Photo: Noah Tobias)

Earlier in 2019, Brand’s office, tasked with investigating complaints of police inefficiency and misconduct, put out a request for public comments in the Overstrand. They received almost 300 replies from civilians in Gansbaai, Hermanus, and elsewhere detailing the damage illegal fishing had wreaked on the community.

“Abalone poaching is huge, and what comes with it is scary,” said one comment. “Young children are bribed with clothes and drugs to become drug runners. When they drop out of school, their families are torn apart.”

Over the past three years, there has been a marked decrease in the amount of abalone confiscated from poachers. Yet Brand does not think that is cause for celebration.

“Residents have indicated that they don’t report crime anymore because of poor responsiveness by SAPS,” Brand said, continuing, “the assumption can be made that the integrated operations between the different law enforcement agencies have decreased, and the focus has clearly shifted away from abalone-related crimes.” In other words, SAPS are missing the threat.

In his presentation, the ombud highlighted the inadequacy of police responses, detailing small-scale and institutional problems in the way SAPS handles poaching.

Local SAPS operating procedures indicate four main causes of crime: drugs, liquor, firearms, and vehicles. They stress the importance of violent crimes, crimes against women and children and property crimes — but the words “abalone” or “marine” do not appear once.

So far, Brand said, SAPS in the Overstrand has confiscated more than 200 tonnes of illegally poached abalone, but it stores those shellfish in a single containment facility — a sitting duck for prospective burglars. According to the report, upwards of R40-million worth of abalone has already been stolen from the warehouse. “These crimes are not being investigated by national forces, just local stations,” Brand told the committee. “And that’s because we are not looking at this as an organised-crime issue.”

It is unclear whether SAPS consider abalone poaching to be organised crime, but every available indicator suggests it does not. According to emails send to the ombud from the National Head of Crime Registrar, “abalone crime is indicated as a B crime”, akin to urinating on the street or riotous behaviour.

Brand also told the committee that local police forces are massively understaffed and under-resourced.

In Hermanus, Stanford, and Gansbaai there is less than a single police officer for every 350 residents, well below the UN’s recommendation of one officer for every 200 civilians. There are eight reservists in the Overstrand — none in Gansbaai. At the meeting, a representative from the Department of Community Safety alleged that her department had offered R5-million to hire new reservists, but SAPS did not take the money. These gaps have serious consequences — according to the ombud’s report, 78% of the crimes reported in Hermanus during the 2018/19 operating year have gone without arrests.

In this fight, SAPS face a terrifying opponent.

ACDP MPL Ferlon Christians described a man who took photos of smugglers in the act.

“They came up to him and said, ‘we know where you stay. We will follow you, and we will kill you.’ ”

Committee chair and DA MPL Reagan Allen spoke about his recent visit to Pringle Bay, where he met locals who had been menaced by organised crime syndicates. “Speaking to residents yesterday,” he said, “it’s clear that people who speak out are being threatened on this matter.”

One Hermanus resident who did not want to be identified told the committee:

“I have personally been to the police station with documentary evidence of people transporting materials into the water. The officer who took my statement said he would put it into the file, but we know they won’t put it into action because they’re scared.”

Police absenteeism in the area is on the rise as well, possibly indicating low morale.

Poachers signalled their commitment to combating law enforcement earlier in 2019 by blowing up a boat the ombud called “a brand new vessel with great capabilities”.

“What do we have here? It’s war,” argued FF+ MPL PJ Marais.

“If we can send the police into Manenberg, we should send the navy into Hermanus. If the premier is serious and called the army in to fight crime in the townships, we ought to call in the navy to fight crime in the oceans.”

The ombud’s recommendations were somewhat less drastic, focusing largely on the need to review resources allocated to the Overstrand stations. He also highlighted the importance of treating abalone crimes as serious — the same as rhino poaching — and pushed for a “crime prevention water wing” to police small harbours.

In the past, there have been widespread allegations of police corruption. DA MPL Lorraine Botha pressed the ombud on the issue, but he declined to answer.

“We need to revisit the current policing mode,” according to Brand. For now, his main criticism is simply that “SAPS does not have the ability to effectively investigate crime.”

At the meeting, a representative from the Department of Community Safety alleged that her department had offered R5-million to hire new reservists, but SAPS did not take the money.

This means that they couldn't care less The whole of the SA police force needs a thorough change of mentality and must get rid of all the bad apples

48


https://www.algoafm.co.za/article/local ... onal-park-


48 suspected abalone poachers arrested in Garden Route National Park

10:17 (GMT+2) Fri, 24 Jan 2020

Rangers from Sanparks apprehended 48 suspected abalone poachers on the western side of the Garden Route National Park on Thursday.

Spokesperson Nandi Mgwadlamba says the men were arrested between Keurbooms and Salt River in Tsitsikamma.

Police also confiscated more than 142kg of abalone.

The suspects who are believed to be from Gansbaai, will appear in court on Monday.

SANParks CEO Fundisile Mketeni thanked the rangers, Cape Nature and the South African Police Service (SAPS) for a job well done.

Lock them up please

Disciplinary hearing clears high-ranking fisheries official accused of multimillion-rand abalone theft
2020-01-26 07:31

Tammy Petersen
Abalone worth millions of rand at a farm. (Supplied)



The Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (DAFF) has instructed its legal team to launch an application in the Labour Court to review and set aside the findings of a disciplinary hearing which cleared a high-ranking official accused of being involved in the multimillion-rand theft of perlemoen.

Thembalethu Vico, the former acting chief director of monitoring, control and surveillance, was found not guilty of 14 charges relating to loss of abalone worth millions of rand. Accused of the theft of the pricey mollusc, the chairperson of the disciplinary hearing questioned whether there had been any theft at all.

According to the charge sheet, three tons of abalone belonging to the department was removed or released from its store house in Paarden Eiland, resulting in Vico facing allegations of misconduct relating to its removal.

He was accused of acting in concert with his colleagues – acting director-general, Siphokazi Ndudane and then-chief financial officer Nazima Parker – in releasing the abalone to crime intelligence officers for use in undercover operations, in circumstances which contravened policy prescripts regulating the handling of confiscated abalone, resulting in a loss of an estimated R7m.

According to the evidence presented, the police's application for three tons of abalone was not supported by the department's relevant official, as there were issues regarding their operation plan, as well as the large quantity that was requested. Ndudane had, on the day of the removal of the abalone, given the keys to the storeroom to Vico, who had that night – January 8, 2018 – issued the abalone to the police, who signed acknowledgement of receipt.



The official who declined the request had, upon returning from leave, met with the police and director of public prosecutions (DPP) to investigate what had happened to the abalone. The DPP withdrew the authorisation of the abalone after being alerted that there had been non-compliance with DAFF requirements, stating that the abalone was to be returned to the department at once.

When this was done, it was alleged that it was of a poor quality and that it was not the same abalone issued to the police.

Two subsequent verifications produced different results – the original packing list weight was 3 189.30kg, but the verified weight in March that year was 3 073.50kg, a difference of 115.80kg.

In addition, his alleged failure to report the theft of abalone worth R3.6m from the Office of the Commissioner for Aquaculture Development in Gansbaai in 2017, as well as R14.9m in 2018, resulted in the charges against him.

The chairperson ruled in Vico's favour, saying he had acted under the authority of the acting director-general (DG), questioning how the intention to steal could have been established in that instance.

"It is very difficult to see how the crime of theft can be committed by handing over the item that it is alleged to have been stolen to the police," the judgment reads.

Quality of abalone in question

According to the ruling, 155 boxes of abalone left the store and 155 were returned, with the only dispute pertaining to the quality of the abalone.

The chairperson found that Vico had removed the abalone and handed it over, pursuant to an instruction by Ndudane, saying it was difficult to conclude that Vico, a more junior employee, would have the authority to incite Ndudane and Parker as was alleged. Vico was also found not guilty of failing to report the Gansbaai incidents, as there was no evidence that he even knew about it, the chairperson ruled.

Last year, News24 reported that Fisheries Minister Senzeni Zokwana had tried to get the Western Cape High Court to order the department's DG to stop the disciplinary proceedings against Vico, Ndudane and Parker.

He cited the need to protect classified documents when he tried to get the court to order the department's DG Mzamo Mlengana to stop the proceedings.

Zokwana's advocate Porchia Long said the minister had tried to resolve the matter with Mlengana, as he believed that the hearings could affect investigations by the Hawks, the National Prosecuting Authority and the Public Protector, which he felt were better placed to probe the allegations.

Mlengana was appointed in 2016 and suspended in 2017. According to court papers, while he was on suspension, whistleblowers made certain protected disclosures to Zokwana. The Gauteng High Court ruled that the minister had no power to suspend him, and Mlengana returned to his post last year. He then instituted disciplinary proceedings against Vico, Ndudane and Parker.

'Thank God that truth prevailed'

Mlengana ostensibly disregarded Zokwana's instructions to halt the disciplinary proceedings on the grounds that classified documents had to be declassified. The matter had been withdrawn when the Public Service Commission intervened and was to facilitate the matter, "to avoid a court battle in a public space", the minister's spokesperson said at the time.

According to the department, Ndudane's disciplinary process was finalised on November 29 last year, with a sanction of dismissal.

In December, the Sunday Times reported that she had been hired as the head of the Eastern Cape Rural Development and Agrarian Reform department, five days after being found guilty in departmental proceedings. Parker was dismissed on February 26.

Vico on Friday told News24 he could "only thank God that truth prevailed". Department spokesperson Reggie Ngcobo, however, said it had "noted the outcome of the chairperson of the disciplinary hearing with "concerns" and had instructed its legal team to launch an application to review and set aside the finding of the Labour Court.

Vico said he would "rather not comment on this, at least for now".

"Unfortunately millions of taxpayers' money are spent in processes that people would not even begin to initiate if they were to pay from their own personal purse," he said.

"I think, as senior government officials, we must always use taxpayers money with greater care and prudence, resist temptation of wanting to use the public purse in bullying and bulldozing our powerless juniors."

Ndudane and Parker had told the Daily Dispatch that they would use the outcome of Vico's hearing in challenging their own dismissals.

https://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News ... t-20200126

If that's how things are run inside the department, it is easier to understand why they are not able to put a stop to the poaching