Durban — A 31-year-old man has been sentenced to life imprisonment for raping his biological mother on various occasions.
The Ntuzuma Regional Court sentenced the man who lived with his mother in the KwaMashu area.
KwaZulu-Natal National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) spokesperson Natasha Ramkisson-Kara said that in 2020, the man raped his mother for the first time. Afterwards, he raped her frequently, almost daily.
The complainant (his mother) who is mentally disabled to a degree, complained to the people around her. However, no one heeded her complaints.
“When her sister visited from out of the province, the complainant pleaded to return home with her, due to the rapes.
“The sister then reported the matter to the police and the man was arrested after the complainant pointed him out.
Ramkisson-Kara said that in court, prosecutor Lisa Abrahams led the testimonies of the complainant and her sister; and the evidence of the J88 form and a psychologist’s report.
Court Preparation Officer Senziwe Mthethwa facilitated the complainant’s Victim Impact Statement, in which she said the incident would haunt her for the rest of her life.
She said she had to relocate because of her son’s actions, and he had shown no sign of regret for what he had done to her.
“The man was sentenced to life imprisonment for rape, and, in addition, the court ruled that his name be entered into the National Register for Sex Offenders,” Ramkisson-Kara said.
Meanwhile, in an unrelated incident, the same court sentenced a 58-year-old man to life and seven years’ imprisonment for the rape and sexual grooming of a minor.
Ramkisson-Kara said the accused was a boxing coach and the 13-year-old complainant attended lessons with him.
Initially, he groomed her by greeting her with a hug and a kiss when she went for lessons.
However, this escalated when he raped her and then continued to have sex with her for more than a year. While the complainant did not tell anyone, she recorded the information in her diary.
Ramkisson-Kara said that at some stage, the complainant’s mother discovered the contents of the diary and approached the accused, who denied the allegations.
The accused then went to the complainant’s home, wanting to compensate the family by buying them cows. The complainant’s uncle and mother rejected him and reported the matter to the police.
She said the complainant was taken to the Phoenix Thuthuzela Care Centre for support.
“In court the accused denied all the allegations, maintaining his innocence,” Ramkisson-Kara said.
Prosecutor Lisa Abrahams led the testimonies of the complainant, her mother, her uncle and a doctor.
In the complainant’s Victim Impact Statement, facilitated by Court Preparation Officer Senziwe Mthethwa, the complainant said she is now afraid of people, especially men, and she still has flashbacks of the incident.
“The accused was sentenced to life imprisonment for rape and seven years’ imprisonment for sexual grooming. The sentences will run concurrently.
The court also declared him unfit to possess a firearm and ordered that his name be entered into the National Register for Sex Offenders,” Ramkisson-Kara said.
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