Johannesburg - Four rapists in the Eastern Cape area of Lusikisiki have been sentenced to life imprisonment in three different cases.
According to National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) regional spokesperson Luxolo Tyali, Nathi Chithelo, 32, and Athenkosi Gcambaza, 25, were sentenced for raping an 18-year-old woman, while Avela Somhlahlo, 30, and Thobela Khulani, 35, were respectively sentenced for raping a 3-year-old boy and a mentally ill woman.
He said that in January this year, Chithelo and Gcambaza approached the 18-year-old, who was coming back from school in the KwaNyathi area in the district of Lusikisiki.
The men were known to the victim; they threatened her with a knife and instructed her to follow them to a house that was still under construction.
"They then took turns raping her before fleeing. After her ordeal, the victim alerted the first person she met on her way, and the community was mobilised, leading to the apprehension of the two within the vicinity, and they were handed over to the police," said Tyali.
According to Tyali, both men pleaded not guilty, with Chithelo claiming that the victim was his girlfriend and his accomplice saying the victim consented to a "threesome".
Meanwhile, 30-year-old Somhlahlo pleaded guilty to raping his toddler nephew when his sister, the mother of the victim, was away on September 8, 2021, at the home they shared in the Ngobozana area in the district of Lusikisiki.
"He admitted that he promised to buy the victim sweets and lured him to his room, where he anally penetrated him. He was arrested after the victim reported it to his mother, who took him to St Elizabeth Hospital's Thuthuzela Care Centre. The victim was badly injured, so much so that he uses an artificial instrument to relieve himself," said Tyali.
In the third rape case, 35-year-old Khulani also entered a plea of guilty after being linked through DNA to the rape of a mentally ill and mute woman on July 28, 2021, in Mantlaneni area, also in the district of Lusikisiki.
"He was arrested after the woman showed her mother what had happened to her by pointing to her private parts. The mother immediately went to open a case, and she was taken to the St Elizabeth TCC, where DNA swabs were taken.
"The victim was later able to point out Khulani after the community had rounded up all the men in the village and conducted an impromptu identity parade," said Tyali.
The Star