Police seized equipment and abalone valued at R2.5 million . Photos: SAPS

A farm that had been built up with love was turned into an illegal abalone factory.

But for now that’s at an end. The police swooped down on the Vredenburg farm on Wednesday morning and arrested six people between the age of 31 and 48.

A team consisting of the HAWKS, SAPS K9 Unit and Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries searched the farm and seized equipment and abalone with an estimated value of over R2.5 million.

Police have vowed to continue raiding illegal abalone facilities, stating that the country’s precious marine resources are being plundered. The six people appear in the Vredenburg magistrate’s court today on charges in contravention of the Living Marine Resources Act.