In a landmark ruling on October 11, 2024, the Limpopo Division of the High Court in Polokwane has sent a clear message to would-be criminals. A 28-year-old man rapist, Phelane Mathata Gift, was sentenced to an effective 70 years in prison for an alarming spree of crimes that included rape, robbery with aggravating circumstances, and kidnapping.
This chilling saga encompasses eight victims over the years 2020 and 2021, all caught in Gift’s predatory web.
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The Modus Operandi of a Monster
Phelane Mathata Gift was not your garden-variety criminal; he operated with a dark ingenuity. Many of the women, aged 17 to 35, were lured through Facebook, promising job opportunities at mines in Burgersfort. Others faced a more direct approach—encounters on the street quickly escalated into terrifying assault, all underlined by the threat of a knife.
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Justice In Action For Rapist
After a meticulous investigation led by Detective Sergeant Jacob Letswalo Mojalefa of the Family Violence, Child Protection, and Sexual Offenses unit, the case against Gift was summed up in a resounding verdict.
With 12 counts of serious crimes, the court’s decision was not just about punishment; it was a statement that such heinous acts would not go unpunished. As the provincial commissioner of the South African Police Service in Limpopo, Lieutenant General Themba Hadebe, celebrated the conviction, we are reminded that while the scars of those involved remain, justice has indeed been served for the victims and their families.
