As the country marks the 16 Days of Activism of No Violence Against Women and Children campaign, the South African Police Service (SAPS) has highlighted the work of its men and women in blue who work tirelessly to put behind bars those involved in the abuse of women, children and vulnerable groups.
One such example is Warrant Officer Alistair Rezant who is attached to the Western Cape SAPS’s Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences Investigations (FCS) unit.
With an overwhelming success rate, W/O Rezant has managed to secure a total of 1 105 years imprisonment sentence for rapists.
This year, the investigator secured a lengthy conviction for Riegard David Myburgh who was found guilty for numerous counts of rape and sexual assault charges. Myburgh is a paedophile who targeted young boys between 8 and 11 years of age between 2014 and 2019.
Because of Warrant Officer Rezant’s meticulous investigation, Myburgh’s name has been entered into the National Register for Sex Offenders (NRSO) which records the names of persons who have been convicted of charges of sexual offences committed against a child or a mentally disabled person.
The member was also instrumental in securing the conviction of Mark Labuschagne who was a handyman at a retirement village in the Western Cape.
Labuschagne was sentenced to 15 years direct imprisonment for sexually assaulting an elderly women at the retirement village and for performing acts of self-masturbation in front of the elderly. His victims were aged between 70 and 96 years of age.
Labuschagne’s name was also recorded in both the Sexual Offences Register and the Abuse of Elderly Persons Register. In addition, he was declared unfit to possess a firearm and also unfit to work with children
The member has vowed to put more of such offenders behind bars.
“Cases related to GBV and sexual offences remains a priority for me. I always oppose bail applications for GBV perpetrators and ensure that all cases relating to rape and abuse are watertight so that they are not withdrawn at the court of law,” said W/O Rezant.
“These hefty sentences meted against sexual offenders should serve as a deterrent to would be offenders,” he said. – SAnews.gov.za
