Johannesburg – A Mpumalanga serial rapist who sometimes forced witnesses to watch him rape his victims was sentenced to five life terms and 66 years in jail by the Mpumalanga High court on Thursday.
Siyabonga Africa Mkhatshwa (26) from Barberton , was found guilty of five counts of rape, four counts of forcing witnesses to watch him rape his victims .
This was announced by Mpumalanga NPA spokesperson Monica Nyuswa in a statement on Thursday evening.
Nyuswa said crimes were committed between May 2015 to October 2018 in different areas of Barberton.
She said according to indictment, Mkhatshwa and his unknown accomplices would target women walking on the street during early or late hours and threaten them with a knife or gun before taking them to the bushes and rape them.
In some instances, they would rob them of their belongings including cellphones and cash.
Nyuswa said in one of the incidents which happened in May 2015, Mkhatswa and his accomplices accosted a 19 year-old old victim, dragged her to the bushes and forcefully gang raped her.
Again, in October 2018, two women were together when they approached by four unknown males including Mkhatshwa ,and demanded cellphones from them.
Afterwards they took them to the bushes where they instructed them to undress and gang raped them after threatening them with a knife.
Mkhatshwa was eventually arrested after he robbed another woman a cellphone at gun point.
Buccal DNA swabs were taken and Mkhatshwa was positively linked to other crimes.
He denied all the allegations, however the senior state advocate, Vuyo Mkhulise led testimonies of several victims who identified Mkhatshwa by the scar on his face.
They told the court how the rape ordeals affected their lives.
Evidence of the forensic experts as well as that of the police officers who attended the crime scenes was also led. DNA evidence was also handed in.
In aggravation of sentence, Mkhulise said there was a huge outcry from civil society that crimes especially those against women and children be dealt with thoroughly.
He further argued that a clear message has to be sent out that there was no space to allow such conduct in the communities and that the law-abiding citizens were looking at the courts to impose the appropriate sentences that will match the crimes committed by Mkhatshwa.
Mkhulise further asked the court not to deviate from the prescribed minimum sentences.
Judge Bruce Langa sentenced Mkhatshwa to life imprisonment on each of the rape count, fifteen years on each count of robbery with aggravating circumstances and three years on each count of compelling someone to witness rape.
The court ordered Mkhatshwa’s name to be entered in the National Register for Sexual Offenders and was also declared unfit to possess a firearm.
Nyuswa said the NPA welcomes the conviction and sentence.
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