KZN man gets life sentence for rape of 10-year-old neighbour

A KwaZulu-Natal man has been sentenced to life imprisonment for the repeated rape of his 10-year-old neighbour.

The 32-year-old man was sentenced in the Ntuzuma regional court after he was found guilty of repeatedly raping the girl over five months.

National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson Natasha Kara said the rapes occurred between December 2020 and April 2021 in the Inanda area.

“The man was known to the child and her family, as they lived in a close community. The man raped the child in his room and threatened to harm her if she told anyone. He raped the child on occasions when she fetched water for their home,” she said.

“The man would even go to her school and take the child away under false pretences so that he could rape her in the bushes nearby.”

Kara said the man was caught when one of the child’s teachers called her parents to school after a change in the child’s behaviour and academic performance.

“They inquired about the 'uncle' who would often fetch the child early from school. At this stage, the child told them about what the neighbour was doing to her. In court, the man denied the allegations against him.”

“The child was clear and consistent in her evidence,” prosecutor Jenisha Sewbaran said. “She related the details of the various incidents. The school principal testified about the child reporting the rapes to her, thus corroborating the child’s evidence.

“The medical report and doctor’s evidence supported the state’s case.”

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