Duduza – Serial rapist Thabani Victor Zondo (33) was sentenced to six life terms in prison and an additional 237 years by the Benoni Magistrate’s Court on Thursday.
The 31 charges brought against him included rape, attempted murder, robbery with aggravating circumstances, kidnapping and attempted rape for a series of crimes committed around the areas of Brakpan, Nigel, Tsakani and Zonkizizwe over a period of four years.
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According to a statement released by Capt Amanda van Wyk, from Gauteng SAPS, Zondo and an unknown accomplice mercilessly kidnapped, repeatedly raped and robbed their victims of their belongings.
“The first case was reported in 2011. One victim was 15 years old at the time she was attacked by the accused,” she said.
In 2015, Sgt Johnson Nkoana from the provincial Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences Unit was assigned to the serial rape case following up on all the available leads.
The meticulousness of Nkoana led him to trace and arrest the accused in the Free State.
The Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (Hawks) of Free State Province arrested Zondo on a case of hijacking, unrelated to the serial rape case in Gauteng.
Van Wyk said it is through the application of forensic techniques and processes by Nkoana that positively linked Zondo to the series of crimes in Gauteng.
Also read: Four suspects arrested for rape
“This ensured a water-tight case against the accused in court,” she said.
The acting Gauteng provincial commissioner of the SAPS, Maj-Gen Patricia Rampota, has welcomed the hefty sentence and commended Nkoana for his relentless commitment and passion to resolve crimes against women, children and vulnerable persons.
“Sheer dedication and thoroughness by investigating officers in the investigation of crimes related to gender-based violence and femicide will restore the communities’ faith in the SAPS,” said Rampota.
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