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JUSTICE was recently delivered for two young children in the Northern Cape who were raped by their stepfather.
The Postmasburg Regional Court ensured that the stepfather faced the full might of the law.
According to Northern Cape police spokesperson Sergeant Omphile Masegela, the two victims, who were six and seven years old at the time of the incident, confided in their aunt about the harrowing abuse.
They told her during a visit that their stepfather instructed them to come and sleep with him and subsequently raped both of them while their mother was asleep.
Despite the mother’s suspicions and fear of the perpetrator, the case was brought to light when reported to the Danielskuil SAPS on October 19, 2018.
The stepfather was apprehended a few days later in Groblershoop but initially evaded justice by breaching his bail conditions.
His subsequent arrest on September 30, 2020, led to his remand for the duration of the trial.
On June 10, 2024, the court convicted the accused on two counts of rape, and subsequently imposed a life sentence for each count. Additionally, he was declared unfit to possess a firearm and listed in the National Register for Sex Offenders.
The provincial commissioner of the SAPS in the Northern Cape, Lieutenant-General Koliswa Otola, was “elated” with the sentence handed down and commended the “meticulous investigation” of the case by Sergeant Gaolatlhwe Mongake from the Postmasburg SAPS Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences unit.
Otola added that the SAPS in the Northern Cape would continue to prioritise the safety of children and vulnerable groups and would ensure that perpetrators are brought to book and that victims of GBVF-related crimes receive justice.