- A 44-year-old man was sentenced to life in prison for raping his two daughters.
- The mother was sentenced to five years imprisonment for failing to report the matter to police.
- It only became known after a teacher noticed a sharp drop in one victim’s school performance.
A 44-year-old man from Carolina in Mpumalanga was sentenced to life imprisonment after being found guilty of raping his two daughters.
According to police, the man, whose identity cannot be revealed in order to protect the victims, was sentenced by the Carolina Regional Court on Monday.
He was handed a life sentence for each rape charge. The sentences will run concurrently.
Police spokesperson Brigadier Leonard Hlathi said the incidents took place between 6 and 22 August 2017.
“During the time when this was happening, the children’s mother chose to remain mum while her children endured this barbaric act of violation,” Hlathi said.
“The victims were subjected to severe trauma for quite a long period until one of the children’s teacher became concerned after noticing a sharp drop in her school performance.”
“When asked, the girl related her story to the teacher and also pointed out that her sister, too, had suffered a similar experience. The matter was immediately brought to the attention of the police, whereupon charges were laid.”
The girls were taken to a place of safety after a case was opened and their parents were arrested on 22 August 2017.
The mother was found guilty of concealing the rapes and sentenced to five years imprisonment for failing to report the matter to police.
Hlathi said that, during the sentencing, magistrate Ricardo Regional Cloete reminded the accused what a father means to his children.
“He told him that a father is supposed to protect his children against harm, but, instead, the accused was the one who caused the very same harm he was to protect his children from.
“The mother was not spared either. Mr Cloete lashed out at her, telling her that she was supposed to have protected her children by reporting the matter to the police, but she opted to sweep it under the carpet.”
Mpumalanga police commissioner Lieutenant-General Mondli Zuma said the sentences will serve as a deterrent, “especially during this time when gender-based violence has become a pandemic in the country”.
