28-year-old man sentenced to one life term for rape of a minor

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A 28-year-old man has been sentenced to one life term for rape of a 9-year-old girl by the Pretoria High Court sitting in Benoni.

According to the National Prosecuting Authority’s regional spokesperson Lumka Mahanjana, on August 8, 2021, the minor was playing with her friends in the park in Tamboville, when Ntokozo Khulekani Zikhali from Brakpan approached her, picked her up and took her to a dam, where he raped her and ran away.

Mahanjana says Zikhali was linked to this offence through DNA evidence. 

“In court he pleaded guilty to the charges; however asked the court to deviate from imposing the prescribed minimum sentence.

“The prosecutor, advocate Eric Sihlangu, read to the record the victim impact statement prepared by the social worker, that the child suffered as a result of what Zikhali did, and that she was unable to cope at school, but has since received counselling,” she added.

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Furthermore, Sihlangu told the court that Zikhali committed a serious offence and that the surge of Gender Based Violence (GBV) in the country has reached an unacceptable level.

“Over and above that Zikhali showed no remorse; he only pleaded guilty because the state had overwhelming evidence against him.

“He therefore asked the court to impose a sentence of life imprisonment,” Mahanjana concluded.