LIFE IMPRISONMENT FOR SERIAL RAPIST GRANDSON FOR RAPING HIS GRANDMOTHER

08 MAY 2025

LIFE IMPRISONMENT FOR SERIAL RAPIST GRANDSON FOR RAPING HIS GRANDMOTHER

Kuruman, Northern Cape – A 35-year-old man(who cannot be named to protect the victim) has been sentenced to life imprisonment by the Mothibistad Regional Court after he was charged with one count of rape, with the provisions of Section 51(1) of the Criminal Law Amendment Act 105 of 1997, being applicable. The State alleges that the accused raped his grandmother. On 12 September 2020, at their home in Kagung Village, near Kuruman, then 29-year-old accused was residing with his 72-year-old grandmother who raised him from infancy took a refreshing herbal bath and was sitting in the family’s living room while his grandmother was taking a bath, in the same water, in her bedroom. The accused testified that he was then overwhelmed by a certain “feeling”, describing it as this feeling of an intention to have sex with his grandmother. Taken by this “feeling” the accused allowed this emotion to take over his thinking and proceeded to enter his grandmother’s bedroom, where he overpowered and raping her.

The complainant/grandmother, who walks with the assistance of a walking stick, managed to escape her home and ran to her neighbour for assistance, where she reported the matter, and the police were called, and the accused was arrested. The complainant was examined by a doctor after the rape incident, and it was found that the complainant was bleeding, despite long not menstruating anymore. The complainant testified that she had pain from inside her private parts and struggled to walk as a result thereof after the rape. The Kuruman Thuthuzela Care Centre kept the complainant motivated over the years, as the matter was struck off the roll in 2021 due to outstanding DNA results. The TCC ensured that the victim was checked on and provided with all the psychological assistance she needed until the matter was re-enrolled.

In aggravation of the sentence, the Regional Court Prosecutor, Bernice Bronkhorst-Oor, argued that the accused showed no remorse as he was not truthful. The prosecutor further argued that the accused was a danger to society and had to be permanently removed from society. In sentencing, the Court found the Accused to be a very poor witness, and that his version of events is not reasonably possible to be true. The accused showed no substantial and compelling circumstances that permitted the Court to deviate from the prescribed minimum sentence.

The Accused had a previous of rape, stemming from 2008, when he was still a minor - he was sentenced in 2015, but since he was a minor when he committed the offence, he was given a wholly suspended sentence.

The court found the accused guilty as charged, and the accused, who is now a two-time convicted rapist i.e. a serial rapist, was sentenced to life imprisonment for the rape of his grandmother. The accused was further declared unfit to possess a firearm and unsuitable to work with older persons. The court also ordered that his name be entered into the National Register for Sex Offenders. In addition, the accused was in custody after bail was refused, for another rape case, where he allegedly raped his friend’s girlfriend after they all spent an evening together at a local tavern.

All cases of sexual violence encroach on the rights to dignity and privacy of the victims as enshrined in our constitution; hence, the NPA aggressively prosecutes these cases. Successful prosecution of these cases provides some justice and closure to the victims and their families and removes violent criminals from our streets.

Issued by:

Mojalefa Senokoatsane
NPA Regional Spokesperson
Northern Cape Division
Email: MSenokoatsane@npa.gov.za
Contact: 073 423 3539