The Provincial Commissioner of the South African Police Service in Mpumalanga, Lieutenant General Mondli Zuma has welcomed a hefty sentence handed down by the Witbank Magistrate’s Court where a 36 year old man was sentenced to life imprisonment for raping his eleven year old niece.
According to evidence presented in court, the incident took place on 25 December 2014, at Likazi, Coronation in Witbank. The accused, who cannot be named to protect the identity of the child, invited his sister with his children to celebrate Christmas together. On that evening while everyone was asleep, except for the child who was watching TV with the accused, it is reported that he grabbed her and raped her.
The court heard how the accused threatened the child not to tell anyone about what had happened and gave her R30 to keep it a secret. The following morning the victim reported the incident to her mother who then alerted the police and the accused was arrested.
General Zuma is pleased with the collective work done by the investigating team, the National Prosecution Authority, the Judiciary as well as Forensics which led to the conviction. He further said that criminals who commit such violent crimes cannot be left roaming around the streets freely while innocent women and children live in fear.
Meanwhile, a 33 year old man is expected to appear at the Witbank Magistrate’s Court on 15 November 2019, for dealing in dagga.
The suspect was arrested after members of Middelburg Flying Squad as well as Crime Intelligence Unit received information about a vehicle that was transporting dagga from Nelspruit to Gauteng (Pretoria).
The members launched an Advocate-Operation on the N4 highway and a suspicious vehicle matching the description given was stopped and pulled off the road. Members conducted a search of the vehicle and upon searching, bags of dagga were found inside the vehicle’s boot, back seat and front seat as well, with an estimated street value of R336 000.
The suspect was swiftly arrested.
South Africa Today – South Africa News
