Pretoria serial rapist gets 988 years behind bars

By Kaya 959 News

The North Gauteng High Court has sentenced a serial rapist to more than 1000 years imprisonment.

Sello Abraham Maponya, 33, was handed down five life terms and a further 988 years imprisonment for 72 counts of rape, housebreaking and robbery with aggravating circumstances.

His name has also been added to the National Register for Sex Offenders.

National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson, Lumka Mahanjana, said Maponya raped multiple woman in and around Pretoria between November 2014 to January 2019 with the youngest rape survivor being just 14 years old at the time of the attack.

“In some instances, he broke into the victims’ houses, robbed them and proceeded to rape them, either alone or with accomplices.

Maponya was arrested on 20 March 2019 in Mamelodi for cell phone theft, then his DNA samples were taken it and linked him to rape cases opened at various police stations in and around Pretoria over a period of five years,” she said.

READ: DNA links suspect to almost 100 rape cases across Joburg

No respect for women

Maponya initially pleaded not guilty to all the charges but during the trial he submitted his formal admission.

The then 14-year-old survivor who is now 19-years-old, indicated in her victim impact statement that after the incident she found it hard to concentrate in class which resulted in her grades dropping.

Another victim told the court that six months after the incident she tested positive to HIV and AIDS.

“When delivering his sentence, the judge said Maponya had no respect for women because he committed some of the offences during the period of 16 days of activism of no violence against women and children. Therefore, it was up to the courts to put an end to these crimes,” Mahanjana said.

In his argument, Prosecutor, Advocate Pieter Coetzer, said Maponya is a textbook example of a serial rapist, who embarked on a reign of terror in the Tshwane area for five years.

READ: DJ Dimplez rape allegations raises questions about male stigma with GBV

He added that due to the heinous actions of Maponya, the innocence of victims were taken and many lives were destroyed.

The Court Preparation Officer based at the DPP office provided support to the victims before they testified in court.

The NPA welcomed the sentence and commended the work well done by the SECI Unit of the SAPS and the investigating team which led to a successful prosecution.

Woman sentenced for murdering toddler

Meanwhile, a 49-year-old woman has been sentenced for murdering a 19-month-old toddler in July last year.

Qhamokuhle Ndziba had been in the care of Ncedeni Qwabe as her mother had been working in Cape Town.

NPA spokesperson, Anelisa Ngcakani, said Qwabe was in a relationship with the child’s uncle, Sityebi Ndziba, at the time.

Ngcakani said on 27 July, at their home in Keiskammahoek, Qwabe assaulted the child after she split water on the floor while bathing.

“Qwabe initially said she hit the child lightly with a cloth, however, during cross-examination by the prosecutor, Advocate Louis Sinclair, she revealed that she beat the child up with a peach tree stick,” Ngcakani said.

Qhamokuhle died during the evening due to internal injuries and blood loss.

Qwabe was sentenced to 17 years imprisonment.

Written by: Tamlyn

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