Rape and robbery heard in regional court
The court heard that the man allegedly unlawfully and intentionally assaulted a lady, and stole three cell phones and an undisclosed amount of cash from her possession
A man stands accused of robbery with aggravating circumstances, as well as a charge of rape.
The suspect appeared in Regional Court at the Witbank Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday, June 25.
He pleaded not guilty to both charges against him.
The court heard that the man allegedly unlawfully and intentionally assaulted a lady, and stole three cell phones and an undisclosed amount of cash from her possession.
The aggravating circumstances included that the victim was threatened with a firearm and assaulted with a fist on March 10, 2017.
The suspect pleaded not guilty on the first charge against him.
The second charge against the suspect was that of rape, which also took place on March 10, 2017 where the accused unlawfully sexually penetrated the 36-year-old victim without her consent.
The charge states that the accused inflicted grievous bodily harm upon the complainant, as well as emotional trauma.
He pleaded not guilty on count two as well.
The accused understood the charges against him and the Magistrate explained that for count one, he could face imprisonment of 15-25 years should he be convicted.
On count two, he could possibly face life imprisonment should he be guilty of rape with aggravating circumstances.
Should he be found guilty of rape, without aggravating circumstances, he could still face between 10-20 years imprisonment for rape, should he be convicted.
The lawyer of the accused stated that his pleas are in line with what was discussed prior to the appearance.
The court room was dismissed for an in camera session (a private session, away from open court, held in the Magistrate’s office) with the rape victim.
