Five individuals aged between 20 and 83 made a brief appearance at the Laaiplek Magistrate's Court on Friday, facing charges of unlawfully possessing West Coast rock lobster without the required permits. The group allegedly collected lobster that had washed ashore at Elands Bay during a red tide event, despite official warnings that such marine life is unsafe to eat.
West Coast District police spokesperson Capt. FC van Wyk said officers conducting operations at approximately 02:15 on Thursday spotted two vehicles speeding past them near a bridge on Elandsbaai Road. A pursuit ensued, with one vehicle leaving the road while thick fog prevented officers from following the second. Reinforcements from neighbouring stations were summoned.
"A Nissan vehicle was later found along the road in the direction of Laaiplek. The vehicle had one occupant, an 83-year-old man. He was immediately questioned and told the officers that his passengers had run away," Van Wyk said. A search of the vehicle uncovered a police identity card, 418 lobsters, a single lobster tail and an octopus, collectively valued at nearly R210 000. The remaining four suspects were located with the assistance of a private drone and subsequently taken into custody.
"The vehicle and the suspects' mobile phones were confiscated and handed in as evidence and for further processing," Van Wyk added. Large volumes of white clams, whelks and other shellfish have also been washing up at St. Helena Bay and Elands Bay in recent days.
Despite government efforts to remove and where possible rehabilitate the stranded marine creatures, residents and visitors have been arriving under cover of darkness to fill buckets with lobster. Many locals insist the washed-up seafood remains fit for consumption and accuse authorities of denying ordinary people the chance to "make money and put food on the table". Some Elands Bay residents have claimed on social media that they have consumed red tide wash-up seafood for years without ill effects. The Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment has however repeatedly cautioned that exposure to algal toxins and bacterial contamination poses severe health risks. "Consumption can lead to serious illness or death. The public is requested not to collect, sell or eat sea creatures that wash up," the department stated.
DA councillor Leoné Venter from the West Coast district municipality confirmed on Monday that close to four tonnes of lobster had already been returned to the ocean. By that stage, crews were still working to bury approximately 37 tonnes of dead crayfish. Venter indicated that no further wash-ups had been recorded.
