A KwaZulu-Natal man has been sentenced to two life terms and five years for the kidnapping, rape, and murder of a seven-year-old girl, revealing the harrowing details of the crime and its impact on the victim’s family. | Armand Hough / Independent Newspapers
Durban — A 33-year-old man was sentenced to two life terms and an additional five years in prison for kidnapping, raping and killing a seven-year-old girl in northern KwaZulu-Natal.
KwaZulu-Natal National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) spokesperson Natasha Ramkisson-Kara said: “The Mtubatuba High Court has sentenced Lindokuhle Christopher Mhlongo, 33, to a double life sentence and five years imprisonment after he pleaded guilty (Section 112 Plea) to the kidnapping, rape, and murder of a seven-year-old girl on July 29, 2024, in the Empangeni area.
“Mhlongo was sentenced to a term of life imprisonment, each for the rape and murder charges and five years imprisonment for kidnapping. The sentences will run concurrently resulting in the effective sentence of life imprisonment.”
Ramkisson-Kara said that in his plea, Mhlongo said that on the day of the incident, he was sitting on the veranda of his rental house when he saw the child playing outside. He told her to go into his room and take an R1 coin for herself from the table. The child entered the room, and he followed her, shutting the door behind them. He grabbed her and put her on the bed where he undressed her lower body and proceeded to rape her.
He said seeing her powerless and in pain made him realise that what he was doing was wrong.
Mhlongo said he considered letting the girl go but thought she would report him.
He then decided to kill her.
Recalling the murder, Mhlongo said he covered her mouth and nose until she stopped breathing and moving. He then put her body in a bag and placed that bag into a blanket storage bag which he placed under his bed and left the house.
He stated that the following morning, his conscience got the better of him, prompting him to telephone his landlady and confess what he had done to the victim.
Ramkisson-Kara said that in aggravation of the sentence, Advocate Sikhosiphi Sokhela handed in a Victim Impact Statement, compiled by the child’s mother and facilitated by Court Preparation Officer Sithembile Cebekhulu.
In it, the mother said she is still in disbelief that her child is dead, and she doubts she will ever get closure on what happened. She said she feels like she is in a horrible nightmare and misses her child a lot.
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