Man sentenced to double life imprisonment for rape

The Ezakheni Regional Court has sentenced a 43-year-old man to double life imprisonment for the rape of two minor girls in 2019, in the Ekuvukeni area.

The accused was an uncle to one of the girls and he was dating the mother of the second girl; the girls were aged seven and eight years old at the time.

On the day of the incident, the girls were playing together at one of their homes when the lights went off. The accused went to them and showed them pornographic videos on his phone. He then asked them to go to the other girl’s house (his girlfriend’s house), where he raped them in the presence of each other. He then threatened them not to tell anyone what had happened.

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After some time, the one girl eventually confided in her aunt, who then contacted the other girl’s family. The families opened a case at the police station and the accused handed himself in a few days later.

In the state’s case, Prosecutor Cwayita Ngcongo led the evidence of the girls and outlined medical evidence. Both girls told the court that they were afraid of the accused and they had trusted him, as he was known to them.

The accused received a life sentence for each of the rapes, and the sentences will run concurrently. In addition, he was declared unfit to possess a firearm and the court ordered that his name be entered into the National Register for Sex Offenders.

The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) welcomes the successful finalisation of this matter. “We commend the work done by the prosecution and the police. We are mandated to fight for justice on behalf of the victims of crime, especially the most vulnerable – being children,” said the NPA.

The news provided to you in this link comes to you from the editorial staff of the Ladysmith Gazette, a sold newspaper distributed in the Ladysmith area.