Cape Winelands man jailed for life for raping two elderly men

Published Mar 17, 2021

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Cape Town - A Cape Winelands man has been sentenced to two life terms and ten years imprisonment, after he was found guilty of raping two men in their sixties.

The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) yesterday said Hennury Cloete was sentenced in the Robertson Regional Court, after he was found guilty on three counts of rape, two counts of housebreaking with intent to rape, common assault and resisting arrest.

The prosecutor, Tertius van der Merwe, told the court that Cloete broke into the house of a 60-year-old mentally disabled man and raped him in Suurbrak, on April 8, 2015, and November 11, 2016.

The man lived alone and has no electricity, and the State has requested the Department of Social Development ensure his care and protection, considering his age and cognitive vulnerabilities.

Cloete was also charged with the rape of a 62-year-old man on August 3, 2018, in Barrydale. He resisted arrest but police managed to nab him.

Van der Merwe argued that the prevalence of sexual offences committed against vulnerable people must be dealt with harshly by the courts.

The NPA welcomed the sentence.