Durban – A KZN convicted sex offender who pleaded guilty to having over 400 images of child pornography of his phone was sentenced to 10 years behind bars.
Jacobus Pieter De Wet, 43, was sentenced in the KwaDukuza Regional Court. His name was added to the National Register of Sex Offenders.
NPA spokesperson, Natasha Ramkisson-Kara said De Wet pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography.
Ramkisson-Kara said De Wet was delivering magazines to a chain store in Ballito in June 2019 when he forgot his cellphone on the counter.
“The staff who found the phone, accessed it in order to establish its owner.
“It was then discovered that there were 420 images of child pornography on his phone.
“These were inappropriate images of unknown children, ranging from ages three months to 16 years.
“Some images depicted adults engaging in sexual acts with these children.
“The personal details on the phone together with CCTV footage, confirmed De Wet’s identity and he was arrested,” said Ramkisson-Kara.
Regional court prosecutor Paul Nel told the court De Wet had two previous convictions, one of sexual grooming and the other of theft.
“De Wet conceded to the court that he had a problem with child pornography and that he was unable to stop himself.”
In a separate case, a Hillary man who downloaded approximately 19 000 images and 1 000 videos depicting child pornography was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment.
Gert Harmzen, 55, was jailed in November 2019.
The Daily News reported that Bellair SAPS with Provincial Family Violence, Child Protection, Sexual Offences and Serial and Electronic Crime Investigation (SECI) unit arrested Harmzen in June 2018 following a tip- off.
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