Thirty-two-year-old Calvin Khunwana will spend the rest of his life in jail after the high court in North West sentenced him to two life terms for rape and murder, five years for kidnapping, and five years for defeating the ends of justice.
The conviction stems from an incident that occurred on July 30 in Photsaneng village near Rustenburg, when a seven-year-old-girl was raped.
It is believed that Khunwana called the girl [who was playing outside her home with two friends] to his yard, which is opposite to the girl’s home.
He took her inside the house and moments later her friends saw her trying to escape through the door, but Khunwana apprehended her and chased her friends away, threatening to assault them.
Khunwana raped the child and strangled her, and later placed her lifeless body underneath a carpet in a storeroom.
National Prosecuting Authority’s regional spokesperson, Henry Mamothame, said the evidence in court indicated that Khunwana took a pair of his sneakers and tried to sell them in an attempt to get money to flee the village.
The body of the child was later discovered with the help of her friends, who pointed out where she was last seen. The accused was arrested and he remained in custody until the trial was concluded.
Judge President Ronald Hendricks said the accused abused the trust relationship between himself and the child, and showed no remorse for his actions.
The director of public prosecutions in North West, Rachel Makhari Sekhaolelo, said: “One life of a child [lost] is one too many. Our fight against such offences requires a collaborative approach from all sectors of society to defeat this scourge.”
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