A Northern Cape man who was found raping a 19-year-old mentally ill woman in the bushes of the small village of Ga-Hue in Dithakong, Kuruman, has been sentenced to life in prison.
The Mothibistad Regional Court has sentenced Kabelo Boikie Tlhaganyane, 57, to life imprisonment after he was found guilty of raping a 19-year-old mentally ill woman.
The State alleged that on the night of December 24, 2014, the accused, who at the time of the commission of the crime was a neighbour of the victim in the small village, brought the victim’s stepfather home after he had been drinking alcohol at the accused’s homestead.
When the accused arrived at the neighbour’s homestead with the stepfather, they found the victim home.
“Instead of leaving after accompanying the father, the accused decided to take the victim, who was 19-years-old at the time, to bushes close to her house and started to rape the victim,” NPA regional spokesperson Mojalefa Senokoatsane said.
“The accused was later discovered raping the victim by the victim’s younger sister after their mother sent the younger sibling to go look for her sister,” Senokoatsane said.
Senokoatsane further added that the family reported the matter to the police, and the accused was promptly arrested and charged with rape, with the provisions of Section 51(1) of the Criminal Law Amendment Act, 1997, being applicable.
Senokoatsane said during court proceedings, Tlhaganyane alleged that the victim had consented to sexual intercourse, and further that on the night in question, he saw the victim for the very first time, despite being a neighbour to the family for more than a decade.
“The accused also claimed that he was unaware of the complainant’s disability and that he did nothing wrong, as the victim had consented to sexual intercourse.
“Due to her mental disability, the victim, after being evaluated by a psychiatrist, was found to be unable to testify in court.
“The said psychiatrist, however, testified in court and indicated that the victim was indeed mentally disabled, and despite being 19-years-old at the time, she was mentally at an age of between seven and nine-years-old.
“He, therefore, concluded that the victim could not have legally consented to the sexual intercourse,” Senokoatsane added.
Senokoatsane also said that the victim impact statement prepared with the assistance of the Court Preparation Officer (CPO), Beauty Moreeng, revealed that after the incident, the victim became withdrawn and the family was ostracised by their community.
In aggravation of sentence, Regional Court prosecutor Bernice Bronkhorst argued that the court should sentence the accused to a prescribed minimum sentence, as he betrayed his neighbour’s trust and took advantage of the victim’s mental disability.
The State argued that to be rehabilitated and reintroduced to society, an accused person had to admit his wrongdoing before the rehabilitation process, and because the accused had shown no remorse, his prospects of being rehabilitated were unlikely.
Senokoatsane said that the court subsequently sentenced the accused, after a lengthy judgment, to life imprisonment.
“The accused was additionally declared unfit to possess a firearm, and his name was ordered to be added to the National Register for Sex Offenders,” Senokoatsane said.
-IOL
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