Cape Town - A rape survivor has bravely testified in the Western Cape High Court about the brutal attack she endured, allegedly at the hands of the same man who pleaded guilty to the murder of 17-year-old Amahle Quku.
The woman, who cannot be named, said that on the evening of October 26, 2019, as she was leaving a party on her way to purchase cigarettes from a local shop, she felt somebody following her. As she turned around she was tripped and fell.
She said the perpetrator proceeded to stab her in the back multiple times, raped her and then pursued her after she tried to escape and stabbed her in the stomach.
“I fell, that’s when he started to stab me in my stomach. He stabbed me in my back before he stabbed me in my stomach.”
She described the stabbing as a “slaughter” because the perpetrator attempted to kill her by slitting her throat – the cut was measured in court to be 15cm long.
The woman said that during the incident she pretended to be dead after she tried to escape but the perpetrator returned to stab her again.
It was estimated that she was stabbed more than 20 times, with the injuries concentrated around her back and abdomen.
While being questioned by State advocate Renee Uys, she said the impact of the attack had left her with a tainted self-image and she was unable to find employment due to her injuries.
“It has impacted my life so much because at the time of the incident I was working but now I am no longer working due to my injuries.
“I feel hurt, especially when I was in hospital because it wasn’t easy to look at myself in the mirror ... now I no longer feel the same way I used to feel about myself.”
Advocate Uys asked: “Was there an arrangement between yourself and the accused to have sex on October 26, 2019?” and she said “No.”
The man charged with her rape and attempted murder, Leonard Mzingeli, on Monday pleaded guilty to the murder of Amahle Quku in June 2020.
On Tuesday he admitted through his lawyer Michael Sibueng that he caused Quku’s death and disposed of her body.
The woman said she recognised Mzingeli from a post on social media after the news broke of Quku’s murder.
She further said she failed to report the case because she had assumed the police were actively searching for the perpetrator of her own ordeal.