Man Sentenced To 40 Years For Rape
The Calvinia Regional Court has sentenced Alfred Swartz (50), of the area of Brandvlei near Calvinia in the Northern Cape, to 40 years, after finding him guilty on numerous charges of rape. The accused was charged with 2 counts of statutory rape and 4 counts of rape, with one of his victims, being his biological daughter. These incidents which took several years began in 2013, when the accused had sexual intercourse with a child under the age of 16 years, with her consent.
The accused had a sexual relationship, with the child who was 14 years old, at the time. During their relationship, the accused became possessive, resulting in him assaulting the child, and when she later refused to have sexual intercourse with the accused, he raped her. The case was reported, and the accused was charged with statutory rape. The suspect was arrested, and his bail was successfully opposed by the Prosecution. Unfortunately, in 2015, the complainant left the area where the crime happened in Brandvlei, and could not be traced, this led to the case being withdrawn and the accused being released.
In 2015 the accused started to rape his biological daughter, who was 08-year-old at the time of the offence. These incidents occurred regularly over the period from 2015 to 2021.
The mother of the child reported the case to the Police and that her husband, the accused had raped their child, when she was not at home. The child mentioned that the suspect, had sexually assaulted her several times since when was 8 years old, and he threatened her not to tell anybody. The suspect was arrested, and his bail was successfully opposed.
After the suspect was arrested, the victim in the 2013 case came to the Prosecutor and mentioned that she left Brandvlei and was residing in Kakamas and the case was re-opened. The accused was remanded in custody, until the commencement of his trial. The prosecution led by Regional Court Prosecutor, Solly John Sass, pleaded with the court not to deviate from the maximum sentence. The court sentenced the accused to count 1, statutory rape 5 years imprisonment; Count 2 statutory rape 5 years imprisonment, count 3, rape 40 years imprisonment, count 4 rape, 40 years imprisonment, count 5 rape, 40 years imprisonment and count 6 rape, 40 years imprisonment.
Magistrate Mbalo ordered that the sentences run concurrently and that the suspect serve 40 years imprisonment. The suspect was also declared unfit to possess a firearm. Solly John Sass, who led the prosecuting team, said that the prosecution was satisfied with the sentences that were imposed by the court, and hopes such sentences will send the correct message to the communities, that crimes against women and children will not be tolerated.
Issued by:
Mojalefa Senokoatsane
NPA Regional Spokesperson
Northern Cape Division
073 423 3539