‘He was supposed to protect the child’: Man sentenced to life for raping little cousin

An Atteridgeville man has been sentenced to life imprisonment for raping his young cousin while on parole for the same crime.

In 2017, a five-year-old girl and her 10-year-old sister were raped by their older cousin. Following his arrest and trial, the then-20-year-old was sentenced to five years direct imprisonment.

After serving only two years of his sentence, the man was released on parole.

Man rapes cousin again

However, the man’s previous conviction did not deter him from committing the same offence to the same child, Pretoria Magistrates’ Court state advocate Dru Ramsamy argued in court.

On 30 April 2019, after his release, the man and the child were at their family home in Atteridgeville with the rest of their family, preparing for the child’s mother’s funeral.

ALSO READ: Man rapes his granddaughter in same bed as her brother

National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) regional spokesperson Lumka Mahanjana said that during the day, while the family was conducting a home service, the child was sent to fetch water from a tap inside the yard.

“The man then snatched the child, dragged her into his room, and raped her. After the rape, the child reported the incident to the family, who in turn reported the matter to the police,” Mahanjana said.

Two days later, on 2 May 2019, the man handed himself over to the police, and he has remained in custody since them.

‘Disregard for the law’

In court, the man pleaded not guilty and denied committing the offence, but the state was able to prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt.

“The fact that the man committed the same offence while out on parole shows his disregard for the law. He violated the child in a most gruesome way while mourning the passing of her mother,” Mahanjana said.

ALSO READ: Tembisa arts teacher sentenced to life for repeatedly raping pupil

“As an older cousin, he was supposed to protect the child; instead, he raped her.”

Ramsamy also handed in the victim impact statement in court, where the child wrote about how the incident left her with physical scars, and, whether her older cousin went to jail, it wouldn’t change the psychological damage he has done.

Mahanjana explained that Magistrate Nosipho Gcawu said the man showed no remorse for the offence, and he never learnt from the sentence of imprisonment he previously served.

Child’s mother allgedly murdered by boyfriend

“What is more heartless is that the man violated the complainant for the second time on the eve of her mother’s funeral, who was reported to have been murdered by her boyfriend. Moreover, the magistrate highlighted the responsibility of the courts to ensuring protection of victims from such heinous crimes,” Mahanjana said.

Therefore, the Pretoria Magistrates Court sentenced the 27-year-old man to life imprisonment and ordered that his name be added to the National Register for Sexual Offenders and the National Children’s Register.

ALSO READ: Boyfriend arrested for murder and rape of girlfriend’s 8-year-old daughter

He was also declared unfit to possess a firearm.

The NPA applauded the sentence and expressed its hope that it will send a clear message to society that these kinds of sexual assault crimes violate the victims’ rights to privacy and dignity and will be prosecuted.