Perlemoen kingpin sentenced to additional five years behind bars

Perlemoen poaching kingpin Morne Blignault, already serving a 20-year sentence, will be behind bars for a further five years after a Port Elizabeth High Court judge ordered that 15 years of a 20 year sentence imposed on Thursday run concurrently with his previous sentence.

Blignault, 47, his son Morne Jnr, 27, Jacob “Japie” Naumann, 35, Danie Prinsloo, 31 and Paul Bezhuidenhout, 22, were convicted on various charges ranging from racketeering to contravening the Marine Living Resources Act and theft in October.

In handing down varying sentences to each of the convicted men, Judge Glenn Goosen detailed each of their roles in an illegal perlemoen poaching enterprise.

“The enterprise involved the handling of abalone collected by divers. [Naumann] dealt with payments made, abalone was then collected by Bezuidenhout who transported it to storage. [Prinsloo and Naumann] would then transport the abalone to Cape Town or Johannesburg,” Goosen said.

Goosen found the Blignault was the mastermind behind the enterprise who controlled and provided funds for the operation.

Blignault’s son was caught and arrested on February 4 2017 while driving a spotter vehicle who acted as a look out and distraction during transportation of the perlemoen Goosen said.

Morne Jnr escaped imprisonment and was given a five year suspended sentence while his father was given an effective 20 years of which 15 years would run concurrently with his previous 20-year sentence following his conviction in a previous case on similar charges.

Naumann, also convicted and sentenced along with Blignault previously was given an effective 12 years, seven if which would run concurrently with the 12 years he is currently serving.

Prinsloo, who has a previous conviction of theft was sentenced to three years while Bezuidenhout also received a five year suspended sentence.