Swilla Corey Swilla Corey was a female Human jerba tender and pickpocket who lived on the planet of Tatooine . Born a slave , she was liberated by raiding Karazak slavers while her master was visiting Tatooine . She decided to make a new life for herself on the desert planet , and continued doing what she had done as a slave : tended to animals . She found limited amounts of work at local ranches , and was able to make ends meet . Her success came to an end , however , when her jerba herd was scattered by a sandstorm . Financially ruined , Corey moved to Mos Eisley , and became a pickpocket . Eventually , she passed on her skills to initiates in the art of thievery . One day , she spotted one of her jerbas outside Chalmun ' s Cantina , and investigated . She discovered that the alien Ketwol had chanced upon it , as it had wandered out of the desert . The Pacithhip helped her rebuild her jerba herd , allowing Corey to return to her former home . Biography . Early life . Born into a life of slavery , the Human female Swilla Corey worked as an animal hand under a Tarnab merchant , gaining experience and knowledge . While in orbit above Tatooine , the merchant was attacked by Karazak slavers . Corey was able to escape to the planet surface unharmed , and , with her newfound freedom , she decided to use her skills with animals to forge a new life for herself . Working on a jerba ranch near the Motesta Oasis , Corey set up residence in an abandoned hut nearby . She would travel the countryside , through farming communities , trading jerba leather , milk , and meat . Though she was never financially secure , Corey was satisfied with just reveling in her freedom — a stark contrast from her upbringing in slavery . Disaster strikes . Corey ' s entire jerba herd was scattered during a sandstorm , and the added antagonism of a wild anooba pack did not help . With no assets whatsoever , Corey abandoned her hut , and moved to Mos Eisley . There , she was forced to resort to petty thievery and begging . Eventually , she began passing on her robbery skills to other initiates in the craft . One day , she saw her brand on a jerba outside Chalmun ' s Cantina , and she entered to investigate . Consulting one of her colleagues , the Yam ' rii Kitik Keed ' kak , she was told that the jerba belonged to a Pacithhip named Ketwol . Seeking answers , she hurried outside in order to wait for Ketwol , just as the Jedi Knight Obi - Wan Kenobi stirred up trouble in the cantina by attacking Ponda Baba and Cornelius Evazan . Meeting Ketwol . Tailing the Pacithhip to his starship , the " Herd Mother " , Corey discovered that Ketwol was using the battered ship as a home . Seeking the right moment , she attempted to steal the jerba , but Ketwol detected the thievery , and stopped her . He explained that the animals had wandered out of the desert towards his ship , and as some of them had been exhausted or wounded , he had cared for them . In turn , Corey told her tale of misfortune , and Ketwol decided to give her shelter . Eventually , Swilla gathered her jerbas and returned to the desert , with the knowledge that she could always return to the hospitality and companionship of Ketwol . Personality and traits . Bereft of lofty ambitions , Swilla Corey , upon being freed , was content with just making ends meet . Instead of making her new life a bountiful one , she preferred a simple existence with her jerba herd , as it was probably the only thing she knew how to do well . However , her lack of credits drove her to thievery when she lost her herd . Corey eventually grew proficient in this craft , and was adept at passing her skills onto others . She was also particularly curious , and did not give up the hope of finding her herd after the sandstorm that had scattered it . Behind the scenes . Originally appearing in George Lucas ' " " and played by an uncredited Mandy Morton , the character that would eventually become " Swilla Corey " was simply known as " Local girl " . Eventually , the character was given the name of " Swilla Corey " in the " Star Wars " Customizable Card Game set , " A New Hope Limited " , which also established the fact that she was a thief . " Swilla Corey " is in fact an anagram of Carol Wisely , a Decipher employee . In 2005 , Corey ' s backstory was elaborated on by Tim Veekhoven through the first round of the feature , " What ' s The Story ? " . Veekhoven initially meant to have Momaw Nadon as the character who aids Corey , but changed it to Ketwol after reading in " " that Pacithhip often herded jerbas . The change was made due to the fact that Veekhoven believed that Nadon had already appeared in a plethora of Expanded Universe material , and as jerbas had already been written into his entry , this change seemed natural . Swilla Corey was later given an entry in " The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia " .