LIFE SENTENCE FOR RAPIST

02 SEPTEMBER 2025

LIFE SENTENCE FOR RAPIST

The Nquthu Regional Court has sentenced a 29-year-old man to life imprisonment for the rape of a woman in September 2023, in the Mondlo area. On the evening of the incident, the complainant had spent time with her friends and was returning home when she met the accused on the way. He asked if he could walk with her as he was going in the same direction, and since she recognised him (she had seen him in the area), she agreed. Along the way, he accused her of stealing his cellphone, and she disputed this. He then assaulted her with his fists, and she fell to the ground, and he raped her twice. Before he could rape her for the third time, the complainant suggested that they go to her house, as there was no one at home.

This was untrue because the complainant’s sister was at home, and the complainant said this to escape their location. The accused agreed, and they went to the complainant’s house. There, she left him at the gate and went to inform her sister that she had been raped, and the accused was at the gate. However, the accused fled when he saw the complainant’s sister. Subsequently, the complainant went to a nearby hospital for medical assistance, and the matter was reported to the police. Since the complainant only knew the accused by sight, she enquired about him from the people who kept company with him, and once she got his details, she informed the police. When the police contacted him, they discovered that he was in Durban. He agreed to meet them on his return (unaware of the rape charge against him). When he returned to the area, the accused went to the police station and was identified by the complainant as the person who had raped her.

In court, Prosecutor Bonginkosi Don Motha led the evidence of the police official (who attended to this matter), as well as the doctor who had examined the complainant at the hospital. In her evidence, the complainant advised the court that the incident had a serious impact on her, affecting her physically and psychologically. The accused was sentenced accordingly and declared unfit to possess a firearm.

The NPA welcomes the successful finalisation of this matter. Curbing the scourge of gender-based violence remains one of the organisation’s top priorities.

Issued by:

Natasha Ramkisson-Kara

NPA Regional Spokesperson

KZN Division

071 6700 229