3 people arrested in Dobsonville spaza shop raid where expired food, illegal medication, live ammo found

The City of Johannesburg is on a multi-disciplinary inspection following another food-related death this week.

City of Johannesburg multi-disciplinary inspection team raided a Dobsonville spaza shop on 22 November 2024 and shut it down for for running a business in a residential area, selling expired products, and using expired asylum papers. Picture: @CityofJoburgZA/X

JOHANNESBURG - Health and safety concerns are at the centre of a spaza shop raid in Dobsonville, Soweto.

The City of Johannesburg is on a multi-disciplinary inspection following another food-related death this week.

A five-year-old child died after consuming poisonous snacks bought at a spaza shop in Diepkloof, Soweto.

Three undocumented foreign nationals were arrested, including the owner.

Expired food, illegally sold medication, live ammunition and pangas were also found at the store.

A City of Johannesburg councillor, Siyabonga Zwane said the shop owner denied knowledge of the weapons found.

"They say they don't know because they say after every six months there's new people. So they say they have never cleaned the premises, they have never checked the premises. That's the response from the owner."