Pretoria - A 33-year-old Mpumalanga man has been handed two ife terms by the Secunda Regional Court for raping his 13-year-old cousin.
The Mbalenhle man, whose name has been withheld to protect the victim, raped the child in the family home where they both stayed.
National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) Mpumalanga spokesperson Monica Nyuswa said on Friday that the man was convicted in connection with the molestation which took place in 2013 and 2014.
"The accused would send the victim to the shop and when she came back he would take her to his room and rape her,” said Nyuswa.
“She then reported the incident in 2019 after attempting to commit suicide by overdosing on her mother’s chronic medication. When asked why she wanted to take her own life, she then told the rape ordeal to her neighbour and that she was tired of living with a rape secret.”
The matter was reported to the police and the 33-year-old was arrested.
“During the trial, he denied the allegations and said that she was influenced to lie because there was a feud in the family.
“The prosecutor, Phumzile Nkosi, led testimonies of the victim, her mother and the neighbour’s evidence. A medical report which showed the victim’s injuries was also submitted,” said Nyuswa.
“The State argued that there were no compelling circumstances for the court to deviate from the prescribed minimum sentence. Nkosi further argued that the prevalence of sexual offences being committed to vulnerable people must be dealt with harshly by the courts.”
The court sentenced the 33-year-old to life imprisonment on each count, and declared him unfit to possess a firearm.
He was also declared unfit to work with children.
The NPA welcomed the conviction and sentence.
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