SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - The California Department of Fish and Game made its first bust Friday of abalone poachers since the sport season opened April 1.

Wardens arrested three divers in Sonoma County for poaching and selling red abalone, CDF spokesman Steve Martarana said.

Ryan Demolsky, 20, Atticus Reynolds, 24, and Lewis Robledo, 26 - all three of Cloverdale -could face three years in prison and a $10,000 fine if convicted.

Martarana said wardens saw the men poach 31 abalone May 1-2 and later sell them to three shops in San Francisco's Chinatown.

"It's a pretty straightforward case," Martarana said. "We got a tip and so we watched them."

The three shop owners - Bill Liang, Mee Mee Wong and Kay Yuen Ng - could also face criminal charges and fines up to $40,000. It is illegal to sell abalone commercially if taken by sport divers north of the San Francisco Bay area.

Divers also must follow bag limits of three abalone per day and 24 per season and turn in punch cards indicating how many abalone they have caught.