A high-speed car chase turned into a brisk 350m footrace that ended in a pair of handcuffs for an alleged abalone poacher who tried to outrun traffic inspectors near the town of Caledon.
Western Cape mobility department officers were patrolling on the R316 this week when they spotted a “suspicious grey Mercedes-Benz driving at high speed. The inspectors immediately pulled the vehicle over, at which point the suspect jumped out and fled on foot,” the department said on Sunday.
“One of the inspectors ran after the suspect, while the other followed them in the official vehicle. After a footrace of about 350m, the running inspector caught up with the suspect and arrested him.”
A search of his vehicle revealed a stash of abalone worth about R750,000 on the back seat.
The suspect was handed over to SAPS.
Mobility MEC Isaac Sileku said, “The officers embodied what mobility in action looks like. If you can’t apprehend a suspect with a vehicle, do it by foot. Abalone is a protected species in South Africa, and the harvesting and trading of it without a permit is illegal.
“Our traffic and law enforcement units can support the conservation of abalone by making it as difficult as possible for it to be transported on our roads. I thank the two inspectors and our traffic and law enforcement units for their dedicated efforts to combat crime, protecting our environment and keeping roads safe,” said Sileku.
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