A 20-year-old man was given a suspended sentence after being found guilty of statutory rape by the Johannesburg Magistrates’ Court.
Handing down the sentence Magistrate Nonceba Jadezweni said the court took into consideration that alcohol played a role during the commission of the crime.
The man who is a university student is understood to have engaged in a sexual act with a 13-year-old girl at a park in the Joburg CBD. The two were apparently returning together from a mutual friend’s party.
They had both consumed alcohol and the man told the court that the girl consented to the intercourse.
In her judgment, Jadezweni noted this claim by the accused and she told the 20-year-old that having sex with a minor is a criminal offence.
The magistrate commended the man for not wasting the court’s time. “You pleaded guilty from the onset. That alone is a mitigating factor, it shows remorse.”
Jadezweni, however, pointed out that the prevalence of the crime in the court’s jurisdiction was high, adding that the commission of sexual offences was also highly prevalent in the country and said the courts need to impose sentences that will deter others.
The man was sentenced to four years’ imprisonment which is wholly suspended for five years. The man was also declared unfit to possess a firearm.
The court ordered that his name is to be added to the Sexual Offenders Register.
The man was also ordered to complete a 10-week programme administered by the National Institute for Crime Prevention and the Reintegration of Offenders (Nicro).
Nicro operates on four main service streams, namely crime prevention, diversion, offender reintegration and non-custodial sentencing.
Related articles:
Dad accused of child rape remains in custody
Father in the dock for alleged rape of daughter’s friend
Woman raped in Fairland allegedly by bogus Metro cops, investigation launched
Thuthuzela Care Centres needs help to continue providing post-rape care
WATCH: Community hold vigil in support of woman who was gang raped in abandoned building
