By: Natasha Archary

A 31-year old man has been sentenced to life imprisonment for the rape of his 6-year old stepdaughter.
The mother of the little girl and the man were in a romantic relationship and were staying together at her house in Olievenhoutbosch.
Using the day the mother left the child in his care on 06 August 2022 to violate her, the man called the 6-year old inside the shack where he instructed her to undress, and proceeded to rape her.
After the incident, he warned the child not to tell anyone about what had happened. Later that night when the mother gave her daughter a bath, she expressed pain and disclosed the incident to her mother.
Police arrested the man on 07 August 2022 after the mother reported the matter, and the child was taken to a doctor.
Since his arrest, the man has been in custody with the state profusely opposing bail. He pleaded not guilty to the charges and denied raping the little girl.
However, the state adduced evidence which proved that indeed the man committed the offence. After his conviction during the sentencing proceedings, the man asked the court to deviate from imposing the prescribed minimum sentence because he had been in custody since his arrest. Therefore, the court should consider the period he spent in custody when imposing a sentence.
In aggravation, the Prosecutor Mpho Monyane asked the court to impose a sentence of life imprisonment because the man committed a serious offence of raping a minor child.
The man was accommodated, clothed, and fed by the mother of the victim since he was unemployed, and he thanked her for her kindness by raping her child. The mother and the child trusted him, and he betrayed their trust.
In the Victim Impact Statement (VIS) facilitated by the Court Preparation Officer (CPO) Lebogang Lebese, the child demonstrated in a form of a drawing that since the incident she is sad and no longer goes outside to play because of what had happened. When handing down the sentence, Magistrate Johanah Mthimunye, agreed with the state and said she found no substantial and compelling circumstances to deviate from imposing the prescribed minimum sentence. Therefore, the sentence given was appropriate.
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