Taximan Sentenced To Life For Raping A Hitch-Hiker
The Butterworth Regional Court sentenced Sindile Lennox Somdaka (55), to life imprisonment for rape. He was also sentenced to three years for kidnapping and 12 months for assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm, with the later sentences ordered to run concurrently with the life sentence. On the morning of 17 May 2019, the 19-year-old victim was hitchhiking from Butterworth to her home village of Mngomanzi. A vehicle driven by Somdaka stopped and blocked her from the view of passers-by before one of the occupants covered her with a cloth and she became dizzy.
When she regained consciousness, she was naked and chained to a steel bed. She was repeatedly raped by a group of men for three days, after which Somdaka instructed that she be taken to a forest where she was to be shot dead. The naked victim managed to escape from the back of the bakkie she was being driven in and outran his captors through the forest and found refuge at the nearby Msobomvu Township. When her rescuers took her to the police station, they found the rapists’ bakkie standing guard near the Msobomvu police station. They then took her to Butterworth Police station.
She managed to take investigators to a homestead where she had been kept captive in Mission Location. It was established that the homestead belongs to Somdaka, who was subsequently arrested at the taxi rank. During the trial, Somdaka claimed to have been in a romantic relationship with the victim. But under cross-examination by State Adv. Kolelwa Siqongana, the accused could not explain the injuries inflicted on the victim, contradicted himself and refused to reveal the identities of his accomplices.
Magistrate Veliswa Sityata agreed with the prosecutor that gender-based violence is rife, and invites the harshest sentence of life imprisonment.
LUXOLO TYALI: REGIONAL SPOKESPERSON:
MTHATHA DIVISION
0735559292