Court delivers life sentence for rape of 14-year-old girl
In her testimony, the complainant said that she is fearful all the time and is haunted by the incident. She said that she is untrusting of men.
The Madadeni Regional Court sentenced a 42-year-old man to life imprisonment for the rape (on diverse occasions) of a 14-year-old girl between October 2022 and October 2023.
The accused and the complainant were neighbours, and the complainant’s mother and the accused’s sister were familiar with each other. The accused’s sister had a younger child and on occasion, she would ask the complainant to come over and take care of her child when she went out.
During this time, the accused was in prison serving a sentence for rape.
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He was released on parole in October 2022 and went back home. The accused then raped the complainant on the occasions that his sister called her (the complainant) over to take care of her child. He threatened to kill the complainant if she told anyone what was going on.
The complainant eventually reported the incident to her mother, and they reported this to the police, leading to the accused’s arrest. The complainant was taken to the Madadeni Thuthuzela Care Centre (TCC) for the necessary support.
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In aggravation of the sentence, Prosecutor Simphiwe Scelo Hlela led to the evidence of the complainant, her mother (the first report), and the medical doctor who examined the complainant. In her testimony, the complainant said that she is fearful all the time and is haunted by the incident. She said that she is untrusting of men.
Regional spokesperson of the National Prosecuting Authority, Natasha Ramkisson-Kara, said, “In addition to the life sentence, the accused was declared unfit to possess a firearm, and the court ordered that his name be entered into the National Register for Sex Offenders. The NPA welcomes this successful prosecution. We hope that sentences of this nature demonstrate that we and our partners in the justice cluster are serious about fighting the scourge of sexual offences and gender-based violence.”
