WATCH: ‘Booze’ truck looting sets stage for KZN crime spree

Several incidents of looting have been reported in the past few days in various parts of KwaZulu-Natal.

Thirsty, enterprising looters who ransacked a truck on the N2 in Hibberdene, KwaZulu-Natal on Monday seemed to be happy with their ill-gotten gains even if the drinks they had taken were alcohol-free. 

On Tuesday, two videos of looters emerged, one of which saw a Spar Tops truck stopped precariously on the highway. Smoke appeared to be billowing out of the back of the truck. 

In the next frame of the video, a person proudly holds up an alcohol-free Savannah. 

The other vehicle appeared to be a Boxer truck. A white bakkie can be seen parked next to it with looters filling it with boxes of goods. 

The N2 truck looting was also confirmed by KZN police Colonel Thembeka Mbele, who said the incident took place during a water supply shortage protest in the Umzumbe area. 

A group of people blocked part of the N2 and R102 with burning tyres and stones. 

Waterloo Tops targeted

Elsewhere in KZN, Waterloo Spar’s Tops store seems to have also been targeted, with pictures emerging on Facebook on Tuesday of a ransacked, damaged store. 

Bottles of alcohol were found strewn around the store and the store’s metal front door appeared bent and broken. 

Mbele confirmed to The Citizen that a case of burgarly was opened at the Verulam police station and the break-in took place late on Monday night. 

Mbele said the Waterloo Spar Tops owner locked up and set an alarm, but received a call just before midnight that the premises had been broken into. 

“A large amount of alcohol had been stolen and some left outside the shop in a trolley.”

One person was arrested for public violence during the Umzumbe protest and for being in possession of a dangerous weapon. The suspect will appear in court soon.