By REGINALD KANYANE
14 April 2026 – The National Prosecuting Authority welcomes the sentence of life imprisonment handed down by the Pretoria Magistrate’s Court to Mr X from Mamelodi Township, in Pretoria for raping his girlfriend’s daughter (12). The NPA said he was further sentenced to five years imprisonment for sexual assault.
The NPA regional spokesperson in Gauteng, Lumka Mahanjana said the court ordered that the sentence of life imprisonment run concurrently with the five-year imprisonment sentence. Mahanjana said between 2022 to 2023, Mr X raped and sexually assaulted his girlfriend’s daughter at their place of residence in Mamelodi.
“This was discovered on 15 May 2023, when the mother of the victim fetched the child from her friend’s place of residence to prepare her to go to school after spending a weekend sleepover at the friend’s place. On arrival at their home, the mother asked why the child did not return home as agreed, the victim informed the mother that her boyfriend had been continuously raping her.
“On the same day, after school, the child went to her father’s place of residence she told her father that her mother’s boyfriend had been raping her. The father of the victim went and reported the matter to the police and after investigations by the police Mr X was arrested,” she said.
Mahanjana further said the victim was taken to Mamelodi Thuthuzela Care Centre (TCC), where she received medical, psychological, and legal assistance from the police and prosecutors. She added that in court, the man pleaded not guilty to the charges preferred against him and denied committing the offences.
“However, the state presented compelling evidence, including the testimony of the victim and her father, which proved his guilt beyond reasonable doubt. During sentencing proceedings, Mr X, through his legal representatives, asked the court to deviate from imposing the prescribed minimum sentences, citing that he is unemployed and also a first-time offender.
“However, the state prosecutor, Vleis Van Zyl argued that Mr X was convicted of a very serious offence that is prevalent not only in the court’s jurisdiction. Furthermore, he said that instead of protecting and looking after the victim, he abused his position of trust and abused her. Van Zyl read into the record a Victim Impact Statement (VIS), where the victim expressed how the incident has negatively affected her emotionally and psychologically,” she said.
Mahanjana said in delivering the sentence, the magistrate agreed with the state that Mr X abused his position of trust as a guardian of the victim. She said therefore, the magistrate found not substantial and compelling circumstances to deviate from imposing the prescribed minimum sentence of life imprisonment.
“The NPA calls on all South Africans to unite against gender-based violence and to create safe environments where the constitutional rights of children, particularly their right to dignity and safety, are fully protected,” said Mahanjana.
The Guardian 