Pretoria - Police in Limpopo have welcomed the imprisonment of a 48-year-old man who raped his 14-year-old stepdaughter in November 2016 at Westenburg, near Polokwane.
Provincial police spokesperson Colonel Malesela Ledwaba said the Mankweng Regional Court found that the 48-year-old man, who cannot be named to protect the minor victim, followed his stepdaughter home after they attended a family gathering in the same area.
The teenager’s mother was left behind at the gathering.
“The little girl was in her bedroom, preparing to sleep when the accused entered her room half naked, and raped her,” Ledwaba narrated.
“According to information, the mother later followed the two, and when she entered their home, she found her husband half naked in the passage while her daughter (was) crying in her room.The matter was not reported to police until the victim informed her stepmother, five years later, while visiting her biological father in Pretoria on 29 January 2021.”
A case of rape against the stepfather was opened in Gauteng.
“The case was transferred to Westenburg Saps and assigned to Warrant Officer Makgane Stanley Ramonetha of the Polokwane FCS Unit. The meticulous investigation by the investigation officer ensured that the suspect was arrested on 14 February 2022,” said Ledwaba.
On Thursday, the stepfather was found guilty on a charge of rape and sentenced to life imprisonment.
He was declared unfit to possess a firearm, and his name will be included in the sexual offences register.
Meanwhile, provincial commissioner of police in Limpopo, Lieutenant General Thembi Hadebe, has welcomed the conviction and subsequent sentencing of the stepfather.
"We are grateful that the accused has finally received the hefty sentence, which will bring peace to the victim and her family.
“We encourage women to stand bold and report any kind of sexual offences without fear, and the police will definitely arrest the perpetrators.”
IOL