A 32-year-old man stunned the court when he revealed that he stole a bottle of whisky from a Shoprite supermarket because he needed it to perform a ritual he believed would help restore his original surname.
Mfanzile Nhlabatsi of New Village appeared before Magistrate Philisiwe Simelane at the Matsapha Circuit Court, where he was charged with theft. The offence was committed on September 16 at Mobeni.
According to the charge sheet, Nhlabatsi unlawfully and intentionally stole a 750ml bottle of Scottish Leader whisky valued at E329 from Mobeni Supermarket, trading as Shoprite. The liquor was property in the lawful possession of Nozipho Dube.
Nhlabatsi pleaded guilty, with the Crown accepting his plea without leading evidence. He was subsequently convicted on his own plea.
During mitigation, Nhlabatsi told the court that he had not stolen the whisky for consumption but rather, he needed it as one of the ingredients for a ritual aimed at changing his current surname back to his original one.
“I could not afford to buy all the ingredients for the ritual and was then tempted to steal the alcohol. I do not drink alcohol but just needed the liquor for the ritual,” he stated. He further explained that his financial circumstances had made it difficult for him to afford the required ingredients.
Nhlabatsi also said he was unemployed, claiming that whenever he secured employment, he would allegedly lose the job shortly afterwards because of issues surrounding his surname change.
Pleading for leniency, he told the court that he had a wife and minor children who depended on him.
Magistrate Simelane sentenced Nhlabatsi to 20 months’ imprisonment with an option of E2 000 fine. However, 15 months of the sentence or a E1 500 fine, was wholly suspended on condition that he does not commit a similar offence. This means that Nhlabatsi will spend five months in prison with an option of E500 fine.
