Cape Town - A 39-year-old man was sentenced to 22 years imprisonment by the Greytown Regional Court for raping a 32-year-old woman at his homestead in Mashunka area, KwaZulu Natal police said on Monday.
Police spokesperson, Colonel Thembeka Mbele, said Sizwe Sithole was sentenced on February 23, for raping the woman in August 2017. She said the accused met the victim at a local tavern in Tugela Ferry and pretended to be her former schoolmate. He then drugged her and took her to his homestead where he kept her for almost two days.
“The victim gained consciousness and managed to flee from the accused to a neighbouring homestead where she sought assistance. Police were immediately alerted to the incident and the accused was swiftly assisted,” Mbele said.
A case of rape was opened at the Msinga police station and assigned to the Greytown Family Violence, Child Protection, and Sexual Offences Unit for investigation. He was remanded for almost two years until successful prosecution, added Mbele.
In another incident, another rape accused, Xolisani Ngubane, 24, was sentenced to 12 years imprisonment for raping a 49-year-old woman at her place of residence in Nqabeni area.
Mbele said the victim was asleep with her one-year-old child, waiting for her husband when the accused raped her at knifepoint. The victim screamed for help and the accused left his clothes and knife behind. The incident was reported to the police and a case of rape was opened at Msinga police station.
“It was also assigned to the Greytown Family Violence, Child Protection, and Sexual Offences Unit for investigation. The accused was later arrested after evading police for a time. He was kept in custody until his conviction,” she said.