Johannesburg – Tshepo Veli Mazibuko, 30, has been sentenced to life imprisonment for the rape of a nine-year-old girl.
Mazibuko, who was a family friend of the victim, invited the victim and her younger brother to his residence under the pretence that they were going to attend his child’s party.
According to the National Prosecuting Authority’s Monica Nyuswa, he went to pick them up from their homestead.
"Upon their arrival at the party, the accused dropped off the victim’s younger brother and requested that the victim accompany him to buy drinks at the shop.
“Along the way, the accused drove with the victim in a different direction, stopped the vehicle next to a shack near the bushes, and asked the victim to come with him inside," Nyuswa said.
Nyuswa said the Mazibuko then locked the door, undressed the victim, and raped her. He then threatened to kill her if she told anyone what happened, and he drove back to pick up the younger brother and drop them off at their homestead.
"In 2019, the social workers visited the victim’s school to address children about the social ills that are happening around them, and she reported the rape and her ordeal. Police were alerted and the accused was arrested."
"In court, he denied he had raped the child and State prosecutor Ellen Mafata led evidence of the victim, the guardian, and the J88 medical report, which confirmed that the victim was raped," said Nyuswa.
Mafata further said that the court must impose a suitable sentence to address the scourge of gender-based violence.
The Star