Durban - A 33-year-old man was convicted at the Pietermaritzburg High Court on Monday of the brutal rape, assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm and aggravated robbery of a 75-year-old woman.
Judge Anton van Zyl convicted Mduduzi Pheyane of the savage attack, saying the victim was an “elderly, frail woman” who suffered extensive injury and spent five days in the intensive care unit as a result of the rape and assault.
“The brutality of the assault is very serious, even more so taking into account the age of the victim,” the judge said.
The woman, now 77, was raped in her Bisley home in August 2012.
Pheyane had entered the home when she was alone and confronted her in her bedroom.
He subdued her by repeatedly strangling, kicking and punching her in the chest, and then raped her and fled with R460, a sewing machine and her cellphone.
The woman, who testified from her bedside, identified Pheyane as her attacker.
She said she had been in the shower that morning after her daughter and son-in-law, with whom she lived, left to have breakfast at a shopping mall.
A noise alerted her and she hurriedly dressed. In the bedroom, she was confronted by a naked man she recognised as a man who had come to the home on a previous occasion looking for work. She recalled that she had turned him away in a rather unpleasant manner.
The woman said the intruder grabbed her around the throat and began throttling her. He then threw her to the floor, and ripped her clothes off before raping her.
She recalled that every time she tried to resist or get up, he would punch her in the chest or kick her, to the point where she became so sore and exhausted she gave up trying to fight.
The woman suffered multiple injuries. She had a deep head wound, and was stabbed below her collarbone with her scissors the intruder found in her bedroom. She also sustained cuts on her wrists.
Van Zyl said the woman, although elderly and bedridden, was a good witness, whose mind was clear and evidence concise.
The judge said the manner in which the rape was carried out indicated that Pheyane may have targeted the woman out of revenge for her previous encounter with him.
The case has been adjourned to tomorrow to allow for the State to prove previous convictions against Pheyane.
Pheyane is disputing that he has previous convictions for housebreaking and theft.
Attack left family devastated
In a victim impact statement submitted to the court in aggravation of sentence, the victim’s daughter said the attack had devastated their family.
“It was a very emotional time for us. We were afraid for my mom’s health, and angry and shocked by what happened. But we are very grateful to God for sparing her life. My mom is a very strong, courageous woman. She is an inspiration to me,” she said.
She added that before the attack, her mother was very independent, and had to work very hard to get that back.
“It has been a long and difficult road. It is sad that we can’t even feel safe in our own homes,” she said.
Daily News