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A 46-year-old man has been sentenced to four life terms in jail for raping young boys in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN).
Lindani Gcumisa appeared in the Pietermaritzburg Regional Court, where the sentence was handed down last week.
Gcumisa committed the rapes at his home at Imbali Unit 18 in the Plessislaer policing precincts between February and March 2024.
On the evening of 23 February 2024, a 12-year-old boy was sent to a tuck shop and took along his two friends.
Police spokesperson Colonel Robert Netshiunda said Gcumisa, who is commonly known as “Uncle Les”, called for the 12-year-old and took him to his room where he raped him.
Gcumisa gave his victim R5 and told him not to tell anyone, but friends later convinced him to tell his mother.
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Netshiunda said a case of rape was opened, and Gcumisa was arrested.
“Thorough police investigations revealed that it was not the first time that ‘Uncle Lee’ had raped him.
“The Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences Unit detectives also uncovered that the victim’s two friends, aged 10 and 13 years old, as well as one of the friends’ 9-year-old sibling were also raped by the same ‘Uncle Lee’, and cases were duly opened against the perpetrator,” Netshiunda said.
KZN provincial police commissioner Lieutenant-General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi applauded the court for sending the perpetrator to prison for the rest of his life, saying it is “minus one predator from society”.
“Rape remains a cause for concern for police in KwaZulu-Natal, and sentences such as this one encourages the police to work even harder in solving cases of rape. Victims are also encouraged to speak out and open cases knowing that justice will be served,” said Mkhwanazi.
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