Read more
The father admitted and pleaded guilty to his offence.
Picture: iStock
A father who raped and impregnated his own daughter has failed to overturn his life sentence after his appeal was dismissed.
The man, identified only as K.T.K., was convicted and sentenced in 2019 after pleading guilty to a charge of rape.
Father convicted for rape of his daughter
The trial, which took place at the Ngwelezana Regional Court, revealed that the father raped his 14-year-old daughter twice, in March and August 2018.
However, the charge sheet did not specify that the victim was his biological child.
The victim later told a doctor that she had fallen pregnant as a result of the first incident.
Despite this, she chose not to have an abortion as the birth of the child would serve as proof of the rape.
ALSO READ: Northern Cape teen with ‘criminal attitude’ avoids juvenile prison for rape of 7-year-old
The state informed the magistrate that the victim and her child were now living in an orphanage.
In a written plea, the convicted man later admitted to being the biological father of the victim and confessed to raping her on two occasions.
He was subsequently sentenced to life imprisonment.
Father appeals rape sentence
The father then appealed to the KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) High Court in Pietermaritzburg, with the appeal heard on 2 May this year.
His legal team argued that he should be given a lesser sentence than the prescribed minimum, as he had pleaded guilty, thereby saving the state time and resources in proving his guilt.
However, Judge Robin Mossop rejected this argument.
“That argument holds very little attraction to me,” the 9 May judgment reads.
Mossop argued that the man had “no choice” but to plead guilty, as the state could have easily proven he was the father of the victim’s child through DNA paternity testing.
“Once that had been established, the appellant would inevitably have had no defence to the allegation of rape.
“He could not consequently have relied upon consent, considering that he admitted that he had intercourse with his own daughter. He was compelled to plead guilty in the circumstances,” he said.
READ MORE: Father handed two life terms for rape and murder of eight-day-old daughter
The judge also rejected the man’s claim that the magistrate had erred in imposing a life sentence.
The father cited three previous judgments in an attempt to support his arguments.
“Some rapes may conceivably be capable of being more severe or brutal than others.
“But there is one distinguishing feature between those three matters and the facts of this matter: the victims in those three cases were not related by blood to the rapist.
“That is the essential point of differentiation from the facts of this appeal.”
‘Incest is outlawed’
Mossop criticised the convicted man for betraying his responsibility of fatherhood.
“A father’s duty is to protect his daughter, not to prey upon her. He is absolutely not entitled to view her as an easy means of satisfying his sexual urges.”
The judge also expressed his surprise that the man failed to mention his daughter’s pregnancy in his appeal application, highlighting that the father was undoubtedly aware of it.
He added that the father, by his own admission, continued to engage in sexual relations with her against her will even after she became pregnant.
“Sexual relations between immediate family members is unacceptable in our society because it infringes upon our societal and community values.
READ MORE: Bloemfontein mother convicted for sexually assaulting minor son
“Scientifically, incest is outlawed because it heightens the risk of genetic disorders and birth defects in children born from such relationships.”
Furthermore, Mossop denied the argument that the magistrate failed to consider the father’s potential for rehabilitation during sentencing.
“It is difficult to contemplate how a person whose moral compass is so defective that it permits him to sexually exploit his own flesh and blood could ever be rehabilitated.”
The father’s appeal was, therefore, dismissed.
Download our app
