July 2021 KwaZulu-Natal looters sentenced to 5-10 years in jail for stealing meat

A civil rights organisation has commended the courts for taking a hard line against the 2021 July riot looters by issuing stiff sentences, saying this will send a strong message against perpetrators of violence.

The July 2021 riots in KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng were sparked by former president Jacob Zuma’s incarceration for contempt of court. During the weeklong mayhem, which led to the deaths of more than 350 people, shops and factories were closed, with the total cost to the economy said to be above R50-billion.

Read more in Daily Maverick: Cyril Ramaphosa: ‘Attempted July insurrection’ left two million jobless and wiped R50bn from the economy

Some of the looters were arrested, but many of the so-called ringleaders, who allegedly coordinated the looting spree, are still at large.

This week, five convicted looters were sentenced in the Durban Regional Court. In June this year, the five were found guilty of being in possession of R80,000 worth of meat in their bakkie in Chesterville township during the riots. The meat had been stolen from nearby Ayoba Cold Storage, which stored meat imported from Brazil.

Mduduzi Buthelezi (52), Mandla Ngcobo (59) and John Thobela (46) were sentenced to 10 years in jail while Sphelele Mazibuko (22), and Sabelo Shandu (23) were each given five years in jail for their part in the crime.

The Asset Forfeiture Unit of the NPA, represented by state advocate Sakhile Ngcobo and senior special investigator Akbar Ally, obtained a high court order granting the attachment of Thobela’s bakkie, which was used in the commission of the offence.

Natasha Ramkisson-Kara, the NPA’s KwaZulu-Natal spokesperson, hailed the cooperation between various stakeholders in the fight for justice, saying the case was an example of fruitful engagement between prosecutors and investigators to bring perpetrators to book.

“This case is an example of how the units within the NPA are working together with the SAPS to ensure that criminals are brought to justice. We hope that the sentences will have the desired deterrent effect. We commend the work done by both [the] prosecution and investigation team,” she said.

The Right2Know campaign welcomed the sentence of the five perpetrators, saying it would send a strong message and a warning against future perpetrators.

Verushka Memdutt, national coordinator of the Right2Know Campaign, told Daily Maverick that her organisation was also seeking solutions to dealing with the underlying causes of the riots, especially among the poor.

“Any form of justice is welcomed and respect granted to the justice system. We are satisfied at the conviction and sentencing of the five by the Durban District Court. This indicates a turning of the wheels of justice.

“We condemn all elements of violence and destruction of property, and we maintain that the real criminals and those that must immediately be brought to book are those who have instigated this chaos. We need responses and solutions that will deal with the hunger that millions of South Africans are facing,” she said. 

Read more in Daily Maverick: Wounds of injustice continue to fester in KZN on tense second anniversary of July riots

Several cases related to the riots have been finalised or are in their final stages.

On 8 September 2023, the Pietermaritzburg Magistrates’ Court is expected to deliver judgment on the case of Mdumiseni Zuma, the 35-year-old man charged with instigating the July 2021 unrest at Brookside Mall in Pietermaritzburg. 

In July this year, the Durban Magistrates’ Court sentenced Mbuso Moloi, the 32-year-old who has since been dubbed the “Mercedes looter” after a video of him carrying goods taken from a Woolworths store in Glenwood, Durban, went viral.

In March, Moloi pleaded guilty to theft and contravention of the National Road Traffic Regulations. He was handed a three-year sentence, suspended for five years, which meant he avoided jail term. In addition, the court sentenced him to correctional supervision and 16 hours of community service per month for 18 months.

In August 2022, the Durban Magistrates’ Court sentenced Sihle Jali, 41, and Sifiso Ngcobo, 29, for their role in breaking into a shop in Durban’s Greenwood Park area and stealing goods. They were charged with public violence and were sentenced to five years in jail.

In September 2022, Njabulo Ncube, another convicted July 2021 looter, was sentenced to an effective eight years’ imprisonment. He had been found guilty of housebreaking with intent to steal and theft. Ncube and a group of others broke into a shop in Umbilo and stole groceries. DM