eMalahleni serial rapist receives 3 life terms plus 115 years

The eMalahleni Regional Court on Thursday sentenced Siyabonga Fana Dlamini (30) to three life terms and an additional 115 years’ direct imprisonment for the crimes he committed in eMalahleni.

He was found guilty of six counts of rape, one count of murder and five counts of robbery with aggravating circumstances.

According to the provincial spokesperson of the NPA, Monica Nyuswa, the serial rapist and his accomplice, Gcina Gama, who pleaded guilty and was sentenced in 2021, terrorised young and old women along the N4 and N12 off-ramp in eMalahleni between May and October 2019.

“They would threaten their victims with a firearm, drag them to the nearby bush, rape them and rob them of their belongings like cellphones, cash and jewellery.

“In another incident, a group of ladies were in the company of a man when they came across Dlamini and Gama. They chased the man and stabbed him to death. They raped the woman and fled the scene. Dlamini was linked to the crime through DNA,” Nyuswa said.

She added that Dlamini pleaded guilty to some of the charges and denied his involvement with the others. However, the state prosecutor, Ellen Mafata, led testimonies of five victims of these ordeals.

“They testified about the trauma they suffered at the hands of the accused. Their evidence was supported by the findings of the identity parade, which linked the accused to the offences and DNA analysis. Victim impact statements were presented in aggravation of sentence.”

The court further declared Dlamini unfit to possess a firearm in terms of Section 103 of the Firearms Control Act 60 of 2000.