Man sentenced to life for Madadeni rape
The victim returned home and discovered that a window had been broken.
The Madadeni Regional Court has sentenced a 29-year-old man to life behind bars for raping an elderly woman in 2024 in the Madadeni vicinity.
According to Natasha Ramkisson-Kara (NPA regional spokesperson – KwaZulu-Natal Division), the complainant and the accused were known to each other.
Ramkisson-Kara explained that the victim returned home and discovered that a window had been broken.
After entering the house and switching on the lights, she said she was accosted by the accused, who told her that he was there to kill her.
He began strangling her.
“He then pushed her onto the bed and raped her, preventing her from screaming by covering her mouth,” explained
Ramkisson-Kara. After the accused fled the scene, the victim sought refuge at a neighbour’s house, where she spent the night.
“She did not immediately disclose the rape because she felt embarrassed to do so. However, the following morning, she informed her relatives what had happened.”
The matter was immediately reported to the police, before the victim was taken to the Madadeni Thuthuzela Care Centre (TCC), where she received medico-legal and psychosocial support and intervention.
The accused was arrested at his homestead after the victim had pointed him out to police.
Victim forced to relocate
In aggravation of sentence, prosecutor Zama Zikalala submitted a victim impact statement compiled by the victim and facilitated by court preparation officer Nokukhanya Alice Cele.
In her statement, the victim described the lasting impact of the attack, including having to relocate from the house where the rape occurred because it reminded her of her ordeal.
“She also said that she still experiences trauma and low self-esteem, compounded by members of the community continuing to speak about what happened to her,” explained Ramkisson-Kara.
The court ultimately sentenced the accused to five years’ imprisonment for housebreaking and life imprisonment for the rape.
He was also declared unfit to possess a firearm, and the court ordered that his name be entered into the National Register for Sex Offenders.
Ramkisson-Kara said the NPA remained steadfast in its commitment to combating sexual offences and gender-based violence, and to ensuring that perpetrators are held accountable.
“This commitment is reinforced by the continued expansion of the Thuthuzela Care Centre network, which has grown from 55 centres in 2020/21 to 68 centres currently operational across the country,” she concluded.
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