A 20-year-old man who pleaded guilty to r@ping four boys aged between four and eight has been sentenced to four life terms by the Pietermaritzburg regional court.
One of the victims was the man’s stepbrother.
National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) spokesperson Natasha Ramkisson-Kara said the incidents took place in May 2021 in the Imbali area outside Pietermaritzburg.
Ramkisson-Kara said in his plea, the man mentioned he had been suffering from depression after his break-up with his girlfriend.
“He said he had initially considered suicide but decided to rape the boys instead. On the day of the incident, the children were playing outside his house when he called them individually into his room and raped them.”
She said the matter came to light when his stepbrother reported the rape to their father.
“Their father then approached the parents of the other boys and they all went to the Edendale Thuthuzela Care Centre (TCC) where the matter was reported. At the TCC, the children received psychosocial intervention as well as holistic medico-legal assistance. The man was then pointed out to the police and arrested.”
Ramkisson-Kara said the man remained in custody and the matter was proceeding to trial when he decided to plead guilty.
In aggravation of sentence, prosecutor Yashania Manickum told the court the man’s actions proved he was a danger to society and at such a young and impressionable age, the boys had learnt to distrust elders.
Manickum also submitted a victim impact statement (VIS) compiled by one of the children and facilitated by court preparation officer Thobekile Babongile Chuene.
“In his statement, the boy said that he does not understand why the man had raped him. He said that he wished for the court to punish the man so that he will not do this to anyone else,” Ramkisson-Kara said.
She said in sentencing the man, the court also deemed him unfit to possess a firearm and ordered that his name be entered in the National Register for Sex Offenders.
The NPA welcomed the successful finalization of the matter.
“We will continue to fight for justice for the victims of crime, especially the most vulnerable in society. We commend the work done by the prosecution and SAPS,” Ramkisson-Kara said.
-TL
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