NKOSINATHI Khawula (45), appeared in the Scottburgh Regional Court on February 24, where he was convicted of kidnapping and two counts of rape. He was sentenced to a double life imprisonment for the rape charges and three years’ imprisonment for kidnapping.
On January 27, 2012, an 11-year-old girl was on her way to the store in Hibberdene when Khawula beckoned her to his residence. As she got to the yard outside his room, he grabbed her and raped her. The little girl reported the incident to her grandmother and a case was opened for investigation. Within days, the Khawula was arrested. The Port Shepstone Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences unit (FCS) investigated the case.
In an unrelated case, the Ixopo Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences Unit (FCS), which is a sub-unit of the Port Shepstone FCS, investigated the rape of another 11-year-old girl in Umzimkhulu, in November, 2010. Early in the morning of November 17, 2010, the victim was on her way to school in Sisulu Ward, Umzimkhulu when she was grabbed by a man who had been following her. He took her to a house where he locked the door and raped her. Nobody heard her cries for help.
Mlamla Gamede (23) was arrested and tried for the rape. He was convicted in the Umzimkhulu High Court and sentenced to life imprisonment.
