‘Woolies looter’ sentenced to house arrest, community service for July unrest spree

The so-called “Woolies looter”, Mbuso Moloi, was sentenced to 18 months of house arrest, coupled with 16 hours of community service every month, in the Durban Regional Court on Friday, 7 July.

In addition, Magistrate Melanie de Jager handed down a sentence of three years imprisonment which has been wholly suspended for five years.

He was also fined R1 000 for driving a vehicle with a number plate which did not correspond with the licence disc.

Damning video footage of ‘Woolies looter’

The 32-year-old Moloi was dubbed the “Woolies looter” after a video of him leaving a Woolworths outlet, in Glenwood, Durban central, with a basket laden with stolen items during the KwaZulu-Natal July 2021 civil unrest, went viral.

In the damning footage, he is seen loading his loot into a Mercedes-Benz C300 Coupé, which has since been confiscated by the Asset Forfeiture Unit (AFU) on 16 November 2022.

National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) regional spokesperson Natasha Ramkisson-Kara told Jacaranda FM at the time that the NPA’s strategy involved taking away assets that were used to commit crimes.

The car was valued at about R500 000 during the looting incident.

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Court hears ‘Woolies looter’ lost UK job

In mitigation of his sentence, a social worker from the Department of Correctional Services, who assessed Moloi, told the court that the “Woolies looter” lost a job in the United Kingdom as a result of the viral video footage.

“I have had sight of his employment contract to a company based in the United Kingdom. He had already started working remotely and there were plans for him to migrate to that country, but that opportunity was lost after his pictures were spread on the internet,” the social worker added.

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Direct imprisonment ‘too harsh’

 She advised that direct imprisonment, which was being sought by the State, would be “too harsh”.

She said the images of him that went viral had added to his punishment, and that the accused had become known as the face of the July 2021 looting.

In March this year, Moloi pleaded guilty to theft and contravention of the National Road Traffic Regulations.

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