Limpopo Provincial Commissioner of the South African Police Service (SAPS), Lieutenant General Thembi Hadebe, has welcomed the life imprisonment sentence handed down by the Giyani Regional Court to a 31-year-old man for raping his 10-year-old relative.
The court heard that the victim's mother left her daughter with her cousin whilst going to a local shop.
“The mother returned from the shop and found her daughter naked. Upon questioning her, she told her that the accused took her (daughter) to his bedroom… forcefully put his private part into her mouth and thereafter raped her.
“The matter was immediately reported to the police and a case of rape was registered and transferred to Giyani Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences Unit for further investigations,” the SAPS said on Saturday.
The case docket was allocated to Detective Sergeant Maropeng Mashapa. The accused was traced and successfully arrested.
The accused was sentenced on Thursday for raping his cousin at Phikela village in Giyani on 13 November 2020.
Subsequent to police investigations, the accused was found guilty of all charges against him and sentenced to life imprisonment for rape.
"We commend the investigating officer for tirelessly working on the case and all other role players who participated, for the job well done," said Lieutenant General Hadebe. -SAnews.gov.za
