Johannesburg - The man who waged an 18-month-long rape and murder reign of terror across Gauteng has received a staggering 13 life imprisonment terms, and an additional 185 years.
On Tuesday at the South Gauteng High Court, sitting in Palmridge, Sibusiso Ndlovu, 31, was convicted of 13 gang rapes, 11 incitement to rape counts, 10 kidnappings, one murder charge and a dozens of violent robberies and assaults for his reign of brutality, which went lasted from February 2015 through to June 2016.
Ndlovu's gruesome crimes entailed breaking into victims' homes with his unknown gang members, where the assailants would ransack the homes and rape women who were in the house.
This included the harrowing 2015 rape of a then 12-year-old girl, who was repeatedly gang raped in front of her distraught parents. The girl cannot be named.
In 2015, Nolubabalo Mangaliso was shot to death after being gang-raped in front of her sister and mother.
Delivering the sentence, Judge Ramarumo Monama was scathing when he handed down the sentence to Ndlovu, calling him "belligerent and disrespectful".
"It is trite and cannot be doubted that this country is in a state of lawlessness. And that lawlessness is contributed by people such as the accused before court," Judge Monama charged.
"The crimes that I have found you guilty of...are out of control. I am satisfied that based on the whole of the evidence placed before me, this gentleman is a danger to society," the judge added.
Judge Monama mentioned that the exact identity of Ndlovu could not be known as he was an undocumented resident in the country, which the judge said made it hard for police to arrest him.
Ndlovu showed no remorse after being sentenced, throwing gun-shaped gang signs to his victims and the public who had attended the proceedings.
The suspect indicated through his lawyer that he would file a leave to appeal application, which will be heard in January. He will remain in custody until then.
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