The Provincial Commissioner of Police in Limpopo, Lieutenant General Thembi Hadebe, has welcomed the life imprisonment sentence handed down to a man convicted of raping his 13-year-old niece in 2022. The sentencing was delivered by the Mahwelereng Regional Court on Thursday, 18 September 2025.
The court heard that the horrific incident occurred on 01 May 2022 at the victim’s home in Mzombane, within the Mahwelereng policing area. The accused had visited the house to assist with preparations for an upcoming celebration. The victim’s mother, who is the accused’s sister, left the premises, leaving her children in his care.
While the group was watching television in the main house, the minor victim went to a shack in the backyard. The accused followed her, tied her hands with a rope, placed a handkerchief in her mouth, and raped her on a bed inside the shack. He subsequently threatened her to keep the assault a secret.
The crime went unreported for over a year until the victim bravely confided in the principal of another school in Limpopo on 28 May 2023. The school immediately contacted the parents, and a case was opened at the Mahwelereng police station the same day.
The investigation was transferred to the Mokopane Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences Unit (FCS), where Sergeant Lesetja Langa was assigned to lead the probe. Their work led to the arrest of the accused on 25 March 2024. He was charged with rape and granted R1000 bail.
After a lengthy trial process, the accused was found guilty. On 18 September 2025, the court sentenced him to life imprisonment for the rape.
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