Pretoria – The Nelspruit Regional Court has convicted and sentenced 37-year-old Muzi Nkuna of Zwelisha to 25 years direct imprisonment for the rape of a 60-year-old woman.
Nkuna was known to the elderly victim, as a person residing in the same area.
Mpumalanga regional spokesperson for the National Prosecuting Authority, Monica Nyuswa said the pensioner put up a brave fight, injuring Nkuna with a plate before she was overpowered and raped.
“On May 11, 2018, the accused entered the victim’s house and a scuffle ensued as the victim fought back. During their scuffle, she managed to injure the accused on his forehead with a plate. The accused overpowered her and raped her twice during her ordeal, and fled the scene,” said Nyuswa.
The incident was reported to a neighbour and the police, and Nkuna was subsequently arrested.
“The accused denied the allegations in court. The State prosecutor Antionette Nkosi relied on the evidence of the complainant, the first report and the evidence of the arresting officer. The court found their evidence credible, and the accused was found guilty as charged.
“Prosecutor Nkosi highlighted the plight of vulnerable members of society and the court found no reason to impose a lesser sentence than 25 years of direct imprisonment,” Nyuswa said.
Meanwhile, the Director of Public Prosecutions in Mpumalanga, Advocate Nkebe Kanyane has welcomed the sentence, and applauded the collaboration between the police and the prosecution.
Last month, the High Court in Polokwane sentenced 32-year-old Gerald Khomotso Makua to life imprisonment after he raped two elderly women, and killed one of them.
On August 28, 2016, Makua found a 62-year-old woman who was collecting firewood in the bushes at Legolaneng village. He attacked and raped the hapless woman before killing her brutally. Makua later cut the deceased woman’s body into pieces.
“The accused continued with his horrendous acts at Mogaung village on June 8, 2019 after he gained entry inside a house in the evening and found a 59-year-old woman who was threatened and raped by the unknown suspect who fled the scene afterwards,” Limpopo police spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Mamphaswa Seabi said at the time.
IOL