Madadeni Regional Court in Newcastle handed down a double life sentence to a man convicted of two counts of rape, one while he was out on bail for the first offence but failed to return to court.

The rapes were carried out in 2017 and 2018 in the Osizweni area near Newcastle.

The court heard that in April 2017, the convicted rapist (33) accosted a 17-year-old girl when she walked past him.

He took her to his house where he raped her twice and then fell asleep. The victim phoned her boyfriend who arrived at the scene with the police, and the accused was arrested.

However, the court granted him bail and he failed to return to court. As a result, a warrant of arrest was issued.

The court further heard that in September 2018, the man contacted a 21-year-old woman after they had exchanged numbers.

He went to her home in a taxi and took her to his house. When the victim told him she wanted to go home, the man ignored her and raped her three times before falling asleep.

While he was sleeping, the woman phoned her family and they arrived with the police, who arrested the suspect again.

In court, the accused denied both incidents, saying that, while he was in a relationship with both women, he did not have intercourse with them on the day of the offences.

The state, represented by regional court prosecutor Bonginkosi Don Motha, led overwhelming DNA evidence against the man.

Motha also led the testimonies of the complainants, their boyfriends, family members, and the doctors who tended to them post-trauma.

In her evidence, one complainant said it was awful to have to call her boyfriend to fetch her when she had just been raped. The other said she felt violated by the man’s actions.

The man was convicted accordingly. He was declared unfit to possess a firearm and the court ordered that his name be entered onto the National Register of Sexual Offenders.

National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson Natasha Kara said they welcome this successful prosecution.

“It is our mandate to prosecute and get justice for all. We hope this sentence will deter like-minded individuals, and we commend the prosecutor and the police on a job well done,” she said.

The NPA declined to release the name of the rapist as one of his victims is a minor.