Eswatini man steals E10,000 to play Aviator
24-year-old’s life unravels as he succumbs to the allure of online betting, stealing E10,000 to fuel his Aviator addiction.
Eswatini.- A 24-year-old Eswatini man has confessed to stealing E10,000 (€483) from his workplace to gamble on the Aviator game. Luyanda Ngwenya, who worked as a supervisor at the Total Filling Station in Matsamo, appeared before the Pigg’s Peak Magistrate’s Court on September 3, 2025, on charges of theft.
Thoko Dlamini, the station’s Director, was the first witness called to the stand to provide testimony. Narrating her account, Dlamini said she grew suspicious when one of the cashiers, Tandi Mhlanga, called her on August 11, reporting that the daily takings were short by E10,000, only to discover that the amount had been accounted for.
At that time, Dlamini was at her home in Ezulwini, and upon receiving the call, she instructed that the security guard lock the office where the cash was stored and not open it until she arrived the following morning.
She arrived at the filling station at 6am the next day and handed the cash over to Cash Securities. Shortly after, a local businesswoman who operates a Mobile Money spaza shop adjacent to the station came with her employee and police officers.
Dlamini said: “The woman informed me that E10,000 was missing from her business and that her employee claimed the money had been borrowed by the supervisor, Ngwenya.”
When questioned, Ngwenya admitted to borrowing the funds from the spaza shop to cover the shortage of the filling station, and upon further interrogation by the authorities, revealed he had used the stolen money to play Aviator, an online betting game where players cash out as a virtual plane flies away, attempting to beat the odds before the plane disappears.
During the cross-examination, Ngwenya, who acted as his own defence counsel, did not dispute Dlamini’s account and said he had no questions for her. Magistrate Nkosingiphile Maseko set the next court appearance for Tuesday, September 9, 2025, when the prosecutor will present its second witness.
The case arrives amid growing concerns in Eswatini about the alarming rise in gambling addiction rates. Recently, the Eswatini Gaming Control Board went on a benchmarking mission to Botswana to learn about the latter’s experiences in promoting responsible gambling practices and mitigating potential social impacts.
As regulators and lawmakers focus on curbing gambling-related harm, this case may serve as a cautionary sign of what is at stake.
