25 Years imprisonment for raping a minor
25 YEARS IMPRISONMENT FOR RAPING A MINOR
The Boschfontein Regional Court convicted and sentenced Sam Vusi Thobela (32) to 25 years of direct imprisonment for the rape of a 15-year-old minor girl. The victim's mother and the accused were working together as general workers in Nkomazi sugarcane plantations. On 01 February 2021, the young girl was on her way from Block B, to her mother's work in Block C, when she came across the accused who dragged her to the sugarcane plantation and raped her. While walking back, she met with her brother who saw her crying and emotional. She then told him about the incident and the mother was informed. The police were alerted, and she was taken to Tonga Thuthuzela Care Centre (TCC) for treatment and psycho-social support.
In court, he pleaded not guilty to the charge, but the State Prosecutor, Joshua Sibeko led evidence of the young girl, the first report and that of her mother. The accused was positively linked through DNA and was found guilty as charged. The Victim Impact Statement facilitated by Court Preparation Officer, Lizzy Mhlongo compiled by the victim was presented in aggravation of sentence. She indicated that the incident left her traumatised, lost confidence in herself and even dropped her studies. The court took into consideration the accused’s circumstances, the interest of justice, as well as the seriousness of the offence and deviated from the prescribed minimum sentence of life imprisonment. The accused was therefore sentenced to 25 years imprisonment, declared unfit to work with children and the court ordered his name to be entered into the Register for Sex Offenders.
The National Prosecuting Authority acknowledges the sentence imposed on the accused and hopes that it will send a strong message that offences of this nature will not be tolerated by our courts.
Kind regards,
Monica Nyuswa
NPA Regional Spokesperson
DPP Mpumalanga
0130450625/ 0764855446