Staff Reporter
A 20-year-old Free State man has been sentenced to life imprisonment after he was convicted of raping and assaulting his 47-year-old disabled mother.
The man, who is from Hlohlolwane township in Clocolan and cannot be named to protect the identity of his mother, was caught in the act by community members in June 2018.
National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) regional spokesperson Phaladi Shuping said magistrate Magda Jacobs this week sentenced the man to life in jail for rape and four months for assault.
According to evidence presented in court, the accused was caught while raping his biological mother who is blind and deaf.
It was also discovered that the woman had also been assaulted.
“State Prosecutor Tshidi Sebolai had to lead circumstantial evidence because the complainant could not testify as she is blind and deaf,” Shuping said in a statement.
“There was also no DNA available. She described the actions of the accused, who was allegedly on drugs, as an act of utmost evil,” the NPA spokesperson added.
The prosecutor told the court that a message needs to be sent that anyone who uses drugs and as a result commits serious offences will be punished severely.
“It is not drugs that violated the victim, it is the accused and he must be punished for his evil actions. He has no respect for human dignity,” Sebolai said.
“The only appropriate sentence the court can impose is life imprisonment because the accused did not advance any compelling and substantial reasons for the court to deviate from the mandatory sentence of life imprisonment.”
Magistrate Jacobs concurred with the prosecutor that there were no reasons for her to deviate from life imprisonment as prescribed by law.
She subsequently sentenced the accused to life imprisonment for rape and four months for assault.
The Free State director of public prosecutions, Advocate Navilla Somaru, welcomed the sentence and commended the work done by the investigating officer and the prosecutor.
“The NPA welcomes the sentence with the hope that it will serve as a deterrent to would-be rapists who prey on vulnerable members of our society,” Somaru said.