Police in Mpumalanga have applauded a 10-year prison term imposed by the Lydenburg Regional Court on a 39-year-old man convicted of r*ping his friend’s wife.
The convicted r*pist’s name is omitted in order to protect the r*ped woman’s identity.
The court heard that in May 2022, a group of four friends, including a 44-year-old lady, gathered for drinks following a funeral in Lydenburg.
“The victim (the woman) felt tired and decided to call it a day. They all got into a car and dropped her at home. Thereafter, they went back for entertainment and the house was locked by the victim’s husband,” said Mpumalanga provincial police spokesperson, Colonel Donald Mdhluli.
During trial, the court heard that the 39-year-old man decided to return to the house where they had dropped his friend’s wife – leaving his friend at the entertainment place.
He managed to get hold of the house keys, then he proceeded into the room where the woman was asleep.
“It was during this time when the accused r*ped the victim,” said Mdhluli.
The incident was subsequently reported to the police and the specialized family violence, child protection and sexual offences (FCS) unit was assigned to probe.
“The man appeared in court on several occasions before he was convicted and, at the end, he received the 10 years direct imprisonment on Monday, October 28 2024,” said Mdhluli.
“Thanks to the Lydenburg Regional Court for ensuring that the man gets what he deserves.”
“We are definitely addressing the scourge of gender-based-violence and we are delighted whenever perpetrators of these heinous crimes are removed from the society for a very long time like in this case,” said Mkhwanazi.
