Cape Town - A Rapist’s appeal against his life imprisonment sentence for raping a minor boy has been dismissed in the Northern Cape Division of the High Court of South Africa, Kimberley.
Edmund Farao, who pleaded not guilty to the charges brought against him, averred in the Fraserburg trial court that the sexual encounter between him and a 16-year-old boy was consensual while Farao was aged 35 at the time.
However, during trial, under cross-examination and confronted with his contradictory evidence, Farao – diagnosed with HIV and aware of his status – admitted he had raped the boy who had contracted syphilis as a result of the violation.
Acting Judge Alme Stanton said: “The trial court, in its detailed judgment on sentence, considered all the relevant factors which come into play when deciding upon an appropriate sentence – the serious nature of the offence, the interests of the community, the prevalence of violence towards women, children and the elderly and the personal circumstances of (Farao). In my view, not one of these factors was over-emphasised at the expense of another.
“In my view, the trial court exercised its discretion in a reasonable manner and the sentence is not shockingly inappropriate,” said Stanton.
During trial, the boy testified that Farao had “grabbed him, pushed him against the cupboards, threw him on a bed, and put (the boy’s) legs on his shoulders” when raping him. The boy further testified that he cried while the incident occurred “but Farao muffled his scream”.
“Farao also threatened to hurt the complainant should he reveal the acts to his parents. True to this, the complainant did not disclose the ordeal to his parents.”
However days after the sexual violation, the boy experienced discomfort “around his anus” and he had then hesitantly told his mother about the ordeal and after a doctor’s consultation, it was found that the boy contacted syphilis as a result of the rape.
“When he took the stand, in essence, Farao denied that he committed the offences with which he was charged. However, when cross-examined and after being confronted with his contradictory evidence, he admitted that he raped the complainant anally, without a condom, and that he was aware of his HIV status when he did so. These concessions were subsequently formally admitted in terms of section 220 of the CPA…
“(The trial court) also considered that Farao committed these offences when he was acutely aware of his HIV status. The more aggravating feature of this case is that the complainant contracted syphilis as a result of the rape,” judgment read.
Cape Times