A child rapist was sentenced to life imprisonment in the Clanwilliam Regional Court in the Western Cape.
The 28-year-old man pleaded guilty to raping his eight-year-old stepdaughter.
The rapist cannot be named to protect the identity of the young girl who may experience secondary trauma.
In his plea explanation, the man said he and his partner were drinking wine and beer on July 6, 2023, at their home in Allendale Trust Farm in Citrusdal. They lived with his partner’s two children in a two-bedroom house on the farm.
The court heard after his partner went to sleep, he went into the bedroom and took off the girl’s pants, removed her underwear, and raped her. Her brother woke up and the stepfather left the room.
State Prosecutor Mark George Taylor read the victim impact statement which revealed the girl had a high level of vulnerability which her stepfather took advantage of.
The girl also revealed she fears her stepfather and does not want to see him again.
The court heard she suffers from serious psychological harm, developed aggressive behaviour, especially towards boys, and could develop several mood disorders, and relational/ sexual problems because of the offence. She could further also develop suicide ideation.
The court sentenced the stepfather to life imprisonment, declared him unfit to possess a firearm, and issued a search and seizure order for competency certificates, licenses, authorisations and permits, firearms, and ammunition.
The court ordered the assistant registrar to inform the registrar of the Central Firearms Control Register of the order. It was further ordered his name be entered into the National Child Protection Register and declared him unsuitable to work with children.
In terms of Criminal Law (Sexual Offences and Related Matters), his name will be entered into the National Register for Sex Offenders.
Western Cape Director of Public Prosecutions, Advocate Nicolette Bell welcomed the sentence. Bell said the convicted rapist, who the victim saw as a father figure, was trusted but his betrayal was painful.
Bell said all cases of sexual violence encroach on the rights to dignity and privacy of the victims enshrined in the Constitution.
IOL