A KWAZULU-Natal man who pleaded guilty to raping his girlfriend’s 5-year-old daughter has been jailed for life.
The man, 28, was sentenced in the KwaDukuza Regional Court.
The incident took place in Shakasville in November 2018.
According to NPA spokesperson Natasha Kara, on the day of the rape the accused had gone to visit his girlfriend at her house and discovered that she had gone to a night vigil. Her three children had been asleep.
“The 5-year-old was sleeping on the bed while her younger siblings slept on a mattress next to the bed.
In his plea, the accused said he became sexually aroused and undressed himself and the girl. He admitted to molesting the girl.
He said he fell asleep and when he awoke his girlfriend had still not returned so he got dressed and left the house.
“When the woman returned, the child told her. She was unsure who the perpetrator was, as it was dark. However, she suspected that it was him. She was taken to the police station where a case against the accused was opened. DNA samples were taken from both him and the child.”
The accused had initially denied the allegations against him, but when the DNA test results linked him to the rape, he had no other recourse but to plead guilty.
In aggravation of sentence, Regional Court prosecutor Paul Nel handed in a victim impact statement completed by the child’s mother who said the accused had betrayed their trust, as her children considered him to be a father figure.
The accused was sentenced and the court ordered that his name be entered into the National Register for Sex Offenders.
Kara said the court declared him unfit to work with children. He was also declared unfit to possess a firearm.
The director of public prosecutions in KwaZulu-Natal, Advocate Elaine Zungu, welcomed the sentence.
“This matter shows the importance of DNA evidence which is vital in such cases. The complainant was only 5 years old and the difficulty was also the issue of lighting and proper identification of the accused. To prove this, the State relied on the DNA results which resulted in the successful prosecution.
“The issue of reporting such cases immediately to the SAPS to allow for the medical evidence to be gathered timeously is pivotal. Members of the community need to be educated on early reporting to allow for medical evidence to be gathered. There is a real need for dialogues on gender-based matters in our communities.”
IOL