South Africa's biggest international abalone smuggling ring

Nineteen men accused of operating South Africa's biggest international abalone smuggling ring were re-arrested, released on bail and are to be tried in the Cape High Court later this year.They appeared before magistrate Alta Fredericks minutes after they were arrested in the corridors of Cape Town Magistrate's Court on Tuesday.The 112 charges instituted against the alleged mastermind Yu-Chen (Richard) Chao, 47, of Milnerton, and his co-accused two years ago was struck off the roll in the Cape Town Regional Court on January 28.The State had been granted warrants for the arrest of the accused, who were told to be at court to face the original charges and a contravention of the Prevention of Organised Crime Act (Poca).They are alleged to have been in illegal possession of 470 tons of perlemoen valued at R200-million. The 19 were arrested between June and March 20 last year after a two-year investigation by the Organised Crime Unit.On Tuesday, members of the police's Commercial Crimes Unit guarded the court's corridors while Fredericks addressed the matter for about two hours, working through the usual lunch hour.State advocate Helene Booysen asked that the matter be transferred to the Cape High Court and that bail be fixed.The State set bail ranging from R2 000 to R100 000 on condition that the accused report to their nearest police station once a week.Some of the accused had to surrender their passports, which could be returned once they had produced proof of their international business. The case has been through repeated postponements; movement of the trial between four different courts; the death of one of the accused during the wait and the State's most recent request that the case only start in the Cape High Court two years after their arrest.Fredericks granted the accused bail and referred the matter to the Cape High Court for October 6.