A Pretoria father has been sentenced to life imprisonment by the Magistrates’ Court for the repeated rape of his daughter over a ten-year period, beginning when she was just nine years old.

National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) regional spokesperson Lumka Mahanjana said the 64-year-old father from Mamelodi appeared in court recently.

“The abuse began when the victim was 9 years old in 2010 and continued until she was 19 in 2020, occurring during weekend and school holidays when the victim would visit her father.

“The mother of the victim and the father were not married; they only shared the child. Before the abuse started, the father told the victim that the abuse was normal in households and warned her not to tell her mother because she had a heart condition.”

Mahanjana said in 2018, when the victim was 16 years old, while being raped by her father, the condom broke.

“When the father realised that the condom was broken, he told her to track her menstrual cycle and if she misses it, she should inform him.”

When the daughter missed her periods and was pregnant, he gave her R1,500 to terminate the pregnancy. The rapes persisted despite this.

She said the abuse came to light in 2021 when the victim started dating and confided in her boyfriend that her father was the only person she had been intimate with, believing it was normal.

“The boyfriend informed the mother, who confronted the daughter. After realising what had been happening was wrong the daughter opened the case at the Mamelodi east police station on January 16 2021 and the father was arrested on the same day.”

Mahanjana said in court, the father pleaded not guilty, denying the charges.

“However, Regional Court Prosecutor Anton Burger presented compelling evidence, proving his guilt.

“During sentencing, the father requested leniency, citing his role as a breadwinner for his wife, three other children, and two granddaughters.”

Burger opposed this, arguing the lack of remorse, the prevalence of gender-based violence (GBV), and the father’s betrayal of his duty to protect his daughter.

Furthermore, Burger said the father instructed his own daughter to terminate a pregnancy after realising that he was going to father her daughter’s child.

“What was more shocking was that the father planned the sexual abuse because he prepared the victim for it before it even started and made her believe it was a normal thing, he added.

“In the Victim Impact Statement (VIS), facilitated by the court preparation officer, Kgomotso Lodi, the victim said she cannot recall life without rape, she lost her teenage years, and she now suffers from depression and low self-esteem.”

When handing down the sentence, the Acting Regional Court Magistrate Pierre Wessels said violence against women and children is a pandemic in this country and it was the duty of the courts to combat such offences.

The Magistrate furthermore agreed with the state that the man showed no remorse for the offences as such he found no substantial and compelling circumstances to deviate from the sentence of life imprisonment.

The court declared the unfit to work with children or possess a firearm, ordered his name added to the National Register for Sexual Offenders, and directed that his two granddaughters be referred to the children’s court for investigation and inquiry.

“The NPA welcomes this sentence, reaffirms its dedication to eradicating GBV, a pervasive crisis in South Africa, by supporting survivors and ensuring perpetrators face severe consequences.

“This case exemplifies our victim-centred approach and our resolve to foster safe environments where children’s rights to dignity and safety are upheld. Together with our justice partners, we call on communities to stand united against GBV, reporting abuse to break the silence and protect the future.”

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