North man jailed for raping five women
"The victims were aged between eighteen and twenty-one."
A 35-year-old Hammanskraal man has been sentenced to three life terms and a combined 25 years’ imprisonment by the Moretele magistrate’s court for raping five women.
Benjamin Bapela (35) was initially facing six counts of rape before one of the victims dropped charges against him.
His crimes were committed during 2013 and 2016. He was jailed on Thursday
Bapela attacked the victims during the night around Suurman Village, Leboneng and Temba, according to police spokesperson Sergeant Herman Moremi.
“One of the victims was attacked while sleeping at her place. The victims were aged between 18 and 21.”
Moremi said the investigating officer Sergeant Khosana managed to identify the suspect through DNA and was arrested in 2017.
“Bapela faced six counts of rape but one of the victims withdrew charges against him. He was sentenced to 10 years on the first count, 15 years on the second count, and three life sentences on three counts. The sentence will run concurrently.”
Temba police station commander Brigadier Martha Mokobori said she was delighted to have a dedicated investigating officer like Sergeant Khosana who always removed criminals from the street and send them to jail for a long time.
Mokobori said police would continue prioritising cases of gender-based violence, and urged victims of GBV not to withdraw cases because these violent cases can lead to a loss of life.
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