SECUNDA – A convicted rapist was sentenced to four life imprisonment terms on Tuesday, 27 November.
Magistrate Graham Cupido, presiding over the Secunda Regional Court dealing specifically with sexual offences, sentenced Mandla Isaac Sithole (39) from eMbalenhle whom the police consider to be a serial rapist, to life imprisonment on each of the four rape charges for which he had been convicted.
Sithole was also sentenced to five more years’ imprisonment for the kidnapping of a child.
He dragged out the time up to the sentencing by refusing to co-operate or speak to his lawyer.
Sithole said at a previous appearance that he did not agree with the outcome of the trial, but Mr Cupido several times reminded Sithole that he had already been found guilty and, although he has a right to appeal the court’s decision, he can only do so after sentencing.
Two of the rape counts on which Sithole was found guilty and sentenced to life, were for joining in the gang-raping of a 21-year-old woman in 2005.
According to the investigating officer, W/O Hezekiel Malapela from the Secunda Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences Unit (FCS), Sithole almost got away with this crime, because he pretended to be helping the victim when the police arrived on the crime scene.
Sithole was also found guilty of kidnapping a 14-year-old girl from her parents’ home in eMbalenhle in 2013 and for raping her twice.
He was acquitted on four other rape charges stemming from a case in 2014 when a woman was raped shortly after having sex with her boyfriend.
The DNA found on a tissue at the crime scene did not match that of Sithole.
Adv Tshepo Khunwana prosecuted.
Also read:
https://www.citizen.co.za/ridge-times/129092/dna-puts-rapists-behind-bars/
