Mbabane – A 40-year old woman told Mbabane Swazi Court that she was forced to steal food and underwear from four different shops in one day because of poverty.
Nomsa Tsabedze of Mgobodzi faced four counts of shoplifting on Tuesday after she pulled a desperate one-day spree.
On Sunday, Tsabedze first went into Day and Day store, where she stole two tablecloths worth E30. She is said to have then continued to the Shoprite outlet in town, where she reportedly took two packets of soup, four tins of fish, two glycerine bottles, a Shield roll-on deodorant, Disprin pills, and hairspray.
That did not stop her from then proceeding to Pep Store where she is accused of stealing a child’s hat, underwear, ribbon, and children’s tekkies.
Finally, she was caught at Power Fashion Factory with four pairs of panties that she was eventually apprehended and the other stolen items were discovered. At Power Fashion Factory, Tsabedze first got the attention of the suspicious manager who alerted Ncobile Zitha, a shop employee, to watch her closely.
“I followed her. Unfortunately, she saw that I was watching her and ducked to another shelf,” Zitha recounted, adding, “I followed her and found her lifting up her top, wanting to put stockings underneath her breasts.”
Zitha confronted Tsabedze, telling her that what she was doing was wrong, unacceptable and criminal.
However, Tsabedze allegedly replied that there was an irritation under her bra and she was only scratching herself because it was itchy. Tsabedze then moved from the stocking section to the panties section and attempted to leave the store.
At the door, Tsabedze was asked to step aside. Zitha escorted her to the kitchen to conduct a search.
“I found four adult panties in her jacket pockets,” Zitha stated. Tsabedze was then asked to remove all her clothes for a thorough search, but nothing further was found.
After dressing, Tsabedze was asked to unpack the groceries she had left at the parcel counter. It was then that the clothes and food items came out.
When asked for proof of payment, Tsabedze claimed she did not notice where she had put her till slips, prompting the contacting of other managers from the other shops where she left a trail.
They confirmed that Tsabedze had not paid for any of the items discovered. During court proceedings, Tsabedze told the court how remorseful she was. She said poverty and hunger drove her to go and steal.
“I looked around the house and found nothing to give my kids. I then decided to go out and search for it”, She told the court.
The court handed down the following sentences: Count 1 resulted in a fine of E500 or 5 months imprisonment; Count 2, E700 or 7 months; Count 3, E700 or 7 months; and Count 4, E600 or 6 months. Tsabedze’s plea of poverty was noted during the proceedings.
Discussion about this post