The Pietermaritzburg Regional Court sentenced Mdumiseni Khetha Zuma to 12 years imprisonment for helping to instigate the 2021 July unrest in KwaZulu-Natal on Wednesday.
According to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), the 36-year-old’s conviction comes after he was found guilty of contravening Sections 17 and 18 of the Riotous Assemblies Act, for inciting people to gather and commit public violence.
He is the first of 60 so-called instigators who have been convicted and sentenced for his role in inciting the riots.
“This was done by making an inciteful video, pertaining to the Brookside Mall, and distributing it on the WhatsApp platform,” the NPA said in a statement.
“The charges relate to the incidents of looting and public violence, which occurred in July 2021 in parts of the country, especially KwaZulu-Natal.”
Just hours after he posted the video on social media the Brookside Mall in Pietermaritzburg was looted and burnt to the ground.
Senior State Advocate Yuri Gangai led evidence of the video footage, audio clips and the testimony of a security guard who worked at the mall. He further led the evidence of two experts who translated the audio clips.
“In aggravation of sentence, Gangai led the testimony of the manager of the mall, at the time it was burned,” said the NPA.
The manager told the court that the estimated damage caused by the looting and fire was approximately R500 million.
“He further stated that the mall serviced five different communities, as well as about 5 000 people who collected their SASSA [South African Social Security Agency] grants there.
“They have all been adversely affected by the burning down of the mall,” the NPA said.
Zuma was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment for count one, two years of which are suspended for five years on condition that he is not convicted of the same offences during the period of suspension.
He was also sentenced to six years in prison, of which two years are to run concurrently with count one.
“This results in the effective sentence of 12 years direct imprisonment,” the NPA said.
While the NPA in KwaZulu-Natal has finalised several cases with respect to the July 2021 unrest, the agency said Zuma’s is the first where an individual has been convicted and sentenced for inciting the civil unrest.
“We hope that this sentence serves as a deterrent to others who intend on engaging in similar offences.
“We commend the working relationship between the DPCI [Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation] KZN and the prosecution,” the NPA said. – SAnews.gov.za
