A 26-year-old Wandile Bome was on Wednesday sentenced to life imprisonment for the gruesome rape of a relative.
The Atamelang regional court added three years for assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm and an additional two years for another charge of assault.
The said incident happened on February 29 2020 at Ganaalagte near Delareyville in North West. The victim and her boyfriend were walking home from a tavern when they were accosted by Bome who attacked the couple with a stick.
Henry Mamothame, spokesperson for National Prosecuting Authority in North West, said the boyfriend fled the scene.
“The accused went on to assault the woman with a stick before grabbing her and dragging her to his place of residence,” said Mamothame.
“He then raped her repeatedly and subsequently chased her away. The complainant described him in court to be his relative.”
Mamothame said Bome was arrested on March 3 2023 after having evaded the police. His bail was reversed after he failed to appear in court.
He pleaded not guilty to all the charges.
The director of public prosecutions in North West, Rachel Makhari, lauded the prosecutor, investigating officer and other role players who brought Bome to book.
According to crime statistics released by Police Minister Bheki Cele early in August, there has been a drop in sexual crimes in the three-month period between April and June.
The statistics show that the murder rate decreased by 3.1% while sexual crimes fell by 2.1% in the reporting period.
“We’ve realised that we’ve taken the right direction, I’m sure the green shoots will be there,” said Cele.
“Not much, but we think as we said the last time, it looks like we are turning the tide. We hope the trend will grow.”
However, a spike in attempted murder cases was noticed in the reporting period.
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