LIFE IMPRISONMENT FOR RAPIST WHO PRETENDED TO BE TRADITIONAL HEALER
The Madadeni Regional Court sentenced a 33-year-old man to life imprisonment for the April 2022 rape (on more than one occasion) of a 17-year-old girl. Prior to the incident, the man befriended the girl’s mother, pretending to be a traditional healer. From his frequent visits to them, he realised that the girl often got sick and would be taken to hospital. He suggested to the mother that he can heal the girl with his traditional medicine so she need not go to the hospital. Her mother agreed to the proposal.
On the afternoon of the incident, he fetched the girl from her home, telling her mother that he would take the girl to the river for a cleansing ritual, followed by a prayer meeting with the other congregants. The girl went with him. However, he took her to his house under the guise of waiting for the other congregants to arrive. There he forcefully undressed her and raped her twice, only releasing her in the early hours of the following morning. The girl immediately reported her encounter to her sister and to her mother; and the matter was reported to the police. The girl was taken to the Madadeni Thuthuzela Care Centre where she received medical and psycho-social assistance. The man was arrested shortly after.
In court, Regional Court Prosecutor Scelo Simphiwe Hlela led the testimonies of the girl, her mother, her sister to whom the matter was first reported to and the medical doctor. Hlela further submitted a Victim Impact Statement compiled by the girl and facilitated by Court Preparation Officer Masande Mdiya. In her statement the girl said that the incident left her traumatised and embarrassed with psychologically scars. She said that she had been a virgin and that was her pride as a young girl.
The man was thus sentenced to life imprisonment.
The National Prosecuting Authority welcomes the successful finalisation of this matter as it affirms our commitment to curbing the scourge of gender-based violence. We commend the work done by the Prosecution and SAPS.
