A rapist recently got his just desserts after assaulting a teenage girl during the latter part of 2012.
The crime took place while a 14-year-old girl from the Ekuvukeni area near Wasbank was returning from running an errand for her grandmother. She was confronted by three young men, two of whom she knew.
The men formed a circle around her and wouldn’t let her carry on with her journey. Sensing danger, she broke free and began running in an attempt to escape from them.
However, she was chased by one of them.
The man caught her a distance away and pushed her to the ground, where he violently raped her. She screamed for help and pleaded with him to stop, but to no avail.
The incident was later reported to her grandmother and a case docket was opened at Ekuvukeni SAPS. The case was taken over by the Ladysmith Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences Unit (FCS) for investigation. Lieutenant TV Zikalala (then a warrant officer) was tasked with the investigation.
The necessary evidence was collected and the search for the suspect began. Fortunately, the assailant was known by the victim, but searches at his home and in the area were unsuccessful as he had fled.
Less than three months later, the suspect was arrested by the investigating officer in the Ezakheni area.
He stood trial in the Dundee Regional Court recently, where he was sentenced to life imprisonment. His particulars are to be recorded in the Registry of Sexual Offenders, and he has been found unfit to work with children or possess a firearm.
