A South African man who used to work for McDonald’s was sentenced to 10 years direct imprisonment after he recorded himself spitting into an ice cream tub at work.

Clement Othusitse Seothaeng (27) from Pampierstad, Northern Cape was sentenced to 10 years in prison by the Pretoria North Magistrate’s Court for extortion and malicious property damage.

He was sentenced to 10 years in jail for extortion, and five years for malicious damages to property. The sentences will run concurrently.

Seothaeng made a recording of himself spitting into ice cream and then pretending to be an angry customer, he demanded R150 000 from the company to avoid leaking the video.

According to the North Gauteng regional spokesperson for the director of public prosecutions, Lumka Mahanjana, Seothaenghad had been employed as a crew member at a McDonald’s outlet in Montana, Pretoria. He said:

On September 23, 2017, while at work Seothaeng recorded himself in a 20-second video clip with his phone preparing a McFlurry ice cream without showing his face, but just as a person wearing a uniform.

However, when preparing it, he spat inside the McFlurry ice cream, mixed it and closed the cap.

After recording himself, he sent the clip to the manager with a different number as a concerned customer demanding R150 000 to avoid the video circulation on social media.

Seothaeng was arrested on 29 September 2017 after the manager had reported him to the police.