WATCH | Looting during lockdown: 35 arrests as ransacking spikes in Cape Town

24 April 2020 - 14:31
By Anthony Molyneaux

SA's national lockdown has seen a spike in looting across the provinces, leading to 35 arrests in the Western Cape in the past few days.

“People are desperate. It is hunger that causes the looting of trucks. Things need to be co-ordinated in an orderly manner so we can stop crime,” said Social Justice Coalition (SJC) deputy general secretary Mandisa Dyantyi.

However, people on the ground in Delft have pointed fingers at chance-takers and criminals for the looting in their area.

"[Some of these people] just want to gain something and they will sell that stuff for drugs. I believe that. They are not hungry because how many soup kitchens are in this area? How many people give out food here?” said Aisha Domingo, a shop owner in Delft.

We take a look at the looting and ransacking of grocery stores, trucks and churches in Cape Town during the extended Covid-19 lockdown.