A 35-year-old Diepsloot man has been sentenced to two life imprisonment terms for repeatedly raping two minor girls, aged seven and eight.
Gift Mahlangu appeared in the Randburg Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday where the hefty sentence was handed down to the convicted rapist.
He was also sentenced to five years imprisonment for kidnapping and a further two years for contravening the Immigration Act.
Rape
National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) spokesperson Phindi Mjonondwane said the two girls were playing on the soccer field in Diepsloot when they were accosted by Mahlangu.
“He took them to the nearby bush area, where he threatened them and claimed to be carrying a gun. Mahlangu smeared their faces with sand and proceeded to rape them. On their way home the victims met community members and relayed their ordeal.”
“The parents and the community members mobilised and assaulted the accused and that is when he fled to the nearest police station to open a case of assault against the community members. The members then explained to the police what really happened,” she said.
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Version of events
Mjonondwane said state Prosecutor Given Mbedzi argued that Mahlangu’s version that did not make sense and didn’t add up.
“The claim that his ex-girlfriend framed him by inserting his semen on one of the minors should be rejected by the court as the minor girls testified truthfully and without contradictions. Mbedzi pleaded with the court not to deviate from the minimum prescribed sentence of life imprisonment as there were no justifiable reasons for the court to do so.”
“Magistrate Gail Pretorius ordered that Mahlangu was unsuitable to work with children and his name be entered into the National Register of Sex Offenders,” Mjonondwane said.
The NPA has commended all stakeholders for ensuring that Mahlangu does not go unpunished for his inhuman crimes against vulnerable minor children.
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