On Thursday, the Pretoria North magistrate’s court sentenced a 28-year-old Akasia man to life in imprisonment for raping his girlfriend’s 12-year-old sister.
The incident began on July 1, 2021, when the young girl went to see her ailing sister in Akasia, where she was staying with her boyfriend. The boyfriend and the girl went with the woman to the clinic in Soshanguve.
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: Grade 6 Learner Dies After Falling From School Bus
“When they got to the clinic, the boyfriend and the victim were not allowed inside because of Covid restrictions.
“While waiting outside the man asked the young girl to walk with him to a nearby veld where he undressed and raped her and warned her not to tell anyone,” said National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson Lumka Mahanjana.
The child told her mother about the incident, and the perpetrator was caught in November of that year. He has been in detention since.
The man pled not guilty and claimed the sexual encounter was consensual.
“However, prosecutor Thamsanqa Given Twala proved that the man indeed raped the girl,” Mahanjana said.
The court said it did not find any substantial and compelling circumstances to deviate from the prescribed sentence of life imprisonment.
The director of public prosecutions in Pretoria, Sibongile Mzinyathi, applauded the work of the investigating officer of the family violence, child protection and sexual offences unit in Ga-Rankuwa, Const Tsholofelo Chiloane, which enabled the state to secure the conviction and sentence.
