Mapaballo Borotho

- Four men have been sentenced to life imprisonment for kidnapping and raping a 37-year-old woman in Mpumalanga.
- The 2019 case was successfully investigated by the Secunda FCS Unit, leading to convictions in December 2025 and sentencing in January 2026.
- The court also barred the men from owning firearms and added their names to the National Register for Sex Offenders.
Four rapists will spend the rest of their lives behind bars after being found guilty of kidnapping and rape.
Nkosinathi Manana, Vusi Kleinboy Nhlapo, Alfred Magubane and Sibusiso Edward Namane were convicted by the Evander Regional Court on 28 January 2026.
The conviction stems from a 2019 incident in which a 37-year-old survivor was kidnapped by four male suspects. They allegedly grabbed her from behind, forcefully placed her into a vehicle and drove away.
She was taken to an open field near a company, where she was raped by all four suspects. The men then drove to the Embalenhle area, where the victim was again raped inside a shack.
Mpumalanga police spokesperson Mpho Nonyane-Mpe said the suspects had planned to kill the survivor, but one of the perpetrators intervened and spared her life.
“A case was subsequently opened and thoroughly investigated by the Secunda Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences Unit, who worked tirelessly to ensure that all suspects involved were traced and apprehended. Through diligent investigation, all four suspects were positively linked to the case,” said Nonyane-Mpe.
The accused were found guilty on 2 December 2025 and sentenced on 28 January 2026 at the Evander Regional Court.
Sentences handed down were:
- Count 1: Kidnapping – 5 years
- Count 2: Rape – Life imprisonment
- Count 3: Rape – Life imprisonment
The court also declared all four men unfit to possess firearms and ordered that their details be added to the National Register for Sex Offenders.
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