A 49-year-old man who raped a minor child and attempted to open a case against the child’s mother has been sentenced to life imprisonment for rape by the Scottburgh Regional Court.
According to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) spokesperson, Natasha Ramkisson-Kara, the victim was eight years old when the man dragged her to the bushes in February 2023, raped her, and threatened her with a knife if she dared to say something.
The victim, who was walking home from school on the fateful day, never said anything when she got home to her aunt and grandmother.
About a week later, the victim went to a local tuckshop with her mother.
“When the accused walked in, the victim became hysterical and asked her mother if they could leave immediately,” Ramkisson-Kara added.
Shocked by the unusual behaviour of her child, the mother asked her about it when they got home, and the victim told her about the incident.
The mother then went back to the tuckshop, where she confronted and assaulted the accused. The man ignored her.
The victim was then taken to the Port Shepstone Thuthuzela Care Centre (TCC), where she received medical assistance.
The following day, the man went to the police station to open a case against the victim’s mother. However, the police realised that he was the one wanted for the rape case and they arrested him.
During the trial, State prosecutor Lindokuhle Gumede presented the evidence of the victim via an intermediary, her mother, and the doctor from the centre. In a victim impact statement, the mother detailed the trauma that the incident had left her and her daughter.
She said the victim experiences nightmares and has performed poorly at school. She said that following the incident, her daughter is scared to walk to school, and they need to pay for school transport, which is costly.
“I have been traumatised by this incident to the extent that I do not sleep well at night and have resorted to taking sleeping pills,” the mother said in her victim impact statement.
In his defence, the man denied the offence and further denied knowing the victim.
The court rejected his version and found the victim to be a reliable witness, even though she was the sole witness.
Handing down its ruling, the court declared the man unfit to possess a firearm.
Additionally, the court found that the man was not suitable to work with children and ordered that his name be entered into the National Registry for Sex Offenders.
“The NPA’s fight against the scourge of sexual violence has been aided by the expansion of the TCC footprint across the country, which has grown from 55 to 66. The centres provide comprehensive services and support to victims of sexual violence,” Ramkisson-Kara.
