LIMPOPO FATHER AND FRIEND SENTENCED FOR RAPING AND ABUSING MINOR DAUGHTERS
16 May 2025
LIMPOPO FATHER AND FRIEND SENTENCED FOR RAPING AND ABUSING MINOR DAUGHTERS
Polokwane, Limpopo – The Polokwane High Court has sentenced a 39-year-old father to life imprisonment for the rape, sexual exploitation, and assault of his two minor daughters, aged 9 and 11 at the time of the crimes. He also received three and five years for two counts of assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.
His 36-year-old friend, a co-accused, was sentenced to two life terms for two counts of rape. To protect the victims’ identities, the perpetrators’ names are withheld. A third accused, 68-year-old Diedrick Schannes Roux, died by suicide before the trial began.
The victims, now aged 11 and 13, endured horrific abuse around 2022 at farms in the Letsitele area, where the accused rented properties.
The girls, referred to as XT and TX, lived with their father after their parents’ divorce. Their mother had left them in his care. The abuse came to light when their remedial teacher assigned a homework task to write about what made them happy or sad. The girls’ letters revealed brutal assaults and sexual abuse by their father, his friend, and others, including Zimbabwean farm workers, allegedly unpaid by the father. These workers, who remain at large, reportedly paid the father to assault the girls.
The victims described multiple incidents:
The father raped and assaulted both daughters, forcing them to watch him engage in sexual acts with his partner, claiming it was “silly things.”
His friend raped the girls during visits to his farm, where they swam with his children. He lured them to the deep end of a dam, raping TX on one occasion and XT on another.
The abuse occurred at a property chillingly named “Half Human Farm,” reflecting the inhumane treatment endured by the victims.
The accused pleaded not guilty to most charges, except for two counts of assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.
Senior State Advocate Lerato Mohlaka led the prosecution, presenting six witnesses, including XT and TX, who testified in camera. The girls bravely recounted their ordeal, supported by evidence from a forensic social worker, a forensic nurse, and a J88 medical report. The court rejected the accused’s claim that the children were “brainwashed,” finding the State’s evidence credible and reliable.
In aggravation of sentence, Advocate Mohlaka argued that the father’s betrayal as a parent and the friend’s role as a trusted family figure aggravated the crimes. She described the victims as “trapped in an evil community” where men exploited them to satisfy “evil thoughts.” Mohlaka cited the older child’s haunting testimony: “Our father knew the men hurt us. He told the farm workers they could use me and my sister because he didn’t have money to pay them.”
She urged life imprisonment, citing victim impact reports by social workers Mabunda Wisani Anastacia, Nkonwana Herna, and Martha Duduzile Mookamedi, which detailed the girls’ trauma, including social stigma and emotional devastation. Mohlaka emphasised the accused’s lack of remorse, sympathy, or empathy, arguing that no substantial or compelling circumstances justified leniency.
Acting Judge Malose Monene echoed these sentiments, stating, “We cannot negotiate with rapists when it comes to sentences.” He condemned the accused for abusing their positions of trust as a father and family friend, leaving the victims with “feelings of worthlessness, guilt, anger, shame, and pain.” Citing Constitutional Court precedents that rank rape among the most heinous crimes, he found the pre-sentence reports by Desmond Nkhensani Muhlari insufficient to deviate from the prescribed minimum sentences.
The father received life imprisonment for rape, plus three and five years for assault, while his friend received two life terms for rape. The court ordered the sentences to run consecutively, ensuring maximum accountability.
The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) welcomes this landmark sentence, which sends a powerful message against gender-based violence (GBV) and child abuse. Director of Public Prosecutions, Advocate Ivy Thenga, commends the tireless efforts of caregiver Marie Elizabeth Bruwer, investigating officer Sergeant Rakgoale of Tzaneen FCS, and Advocate Mohlaka for securing justice for XT and TX. The NPA reaffirms its unwavering commitment to protect vulnerable children and holding perpetrators accountable, no matter their relationship to the victims.
Issued by:
Mashudu Malabi
NPA Regional Spokesperson
Limpopo Division
074 823 3603
mmalabi@npa.gov.za