The South African police service has celebrated a crack detective for his sterling effort in the fight against crimes against women and children.
This as the country observes 16 Days of Activism for No Violence against Women and Children from November 25 to December 10.
Today, SAPS introduces to the nation Warrant Officer Sonwabile Dlomo, an investigator attached to the Serial and Electronic Crime Investigations (SECI) Unit in Zwelitsha, Eastern Cape.
Dlomo says his childhood dream of becoming a police officer came true when he enlisted to the service 19 years ago.
And in that period he has gone above and beyond the call of duty to protect women and children.
He has put more 16 rapists behind bars
His inquisitive mind eventually led to him joining the detective service, and he has been within the Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences (FCS) environment since 2010.
To date, Dlomo has secured 23 life terms and 594 years for 16 rapists, who are now behind bars.
In June 2024, the Makanda High Court sentenced Glass Lechesa to six life terms and an additional 125 years in prison on multiple counts of rape, robbery with aggravated circumstances and common robbery.
Lechesa targeted young girls in and around Joubertina and Addo, the youngest victim was 14 years old at the time. He stalked and attacked these victims on farmland, robbed and repeatedly raped them before he fled the scene.
Dlomo went to work
The case landed on Dlomo’s desk for further investigation. The suspect was still unknown at that stage, but that did not deter Dlomo from cracking the case. He meticulously pieced all available leads together through various investigative techniques. He was able to link the suspect to 10 rape cases.
Hot on the suspect’s heels, Dlomo went to Addo police station to find out if there weren’t more similar unsolved rape cases.
Dlomo says used his “cooling off” period to trace the suspect founding three more cases with a similar modus operandi in the process. These cases were eventually consolidated together.
The crack detective makes the arrest
Lechesa’s reign of terror came to an end on April 16 2023, when Dlomo and his team arrested his.
Dlomo successfully opposed Lechesa’s bail application making he remained in custody until sentencing.
As a SECI investigator, Dlomo’s duties include investigating serial rape cases, sexual crimes committed on electronic mediums such as the possession, distribution and manufacturing of child pornography.
“In most of my cases, the suspects are unknown at first. My goal is always to go beyond the call of duty to trace and arrest these suspects to ensure justice prevails for the victims,” said Dlomo.
- SAnews.gov.za
