Life in jail for man who raped his girlfriend's 12-year-old sister

The Pretoria North magistrate’s court on Thursday sentenced a 28-year-old man from Akasia to life imprisonment for raping his girlfriend’s 12-year-old sister.   

The incident occurred on July 1 2021 when the young girl visited her sick sister in Akasia, where she was staying with her boyfriend. The boyfriend and the girl accompanied the woman to the clinic in Soshanguve.   

“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 reported the incident to her mother and the suspect was arrested in November that year. He has been in custody since.

The man pleaded not guilty and told the court the sexual intercourse 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.

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