The Malamulele Regional Court has sentenced a 44-year-old man to life imprisonment for raping his 17-year-old biological daughter in September 2023.
The court handed down the sentence on Tuesday, 24 February 2026.
The incident occurred on 20 September 2023 at approximately 16:50. The victim was at home with her parents in Matiyani Village when her father instructed her to accompany him to a local graveyard to perform rituals at her grandfather’s grave.
The accused conducted the rituals at the gravesite until around 21:00. Following the ceremony, the pair began walking back to their residence. While traversing through bushes along the route, the accused grabbed and raped his daughter.
After the assault, the victim was threatened and ordered not to disclose the incident to anyone. She remained silent for several months before confiding in her uncle’s wife on 19 February 2024.
The matter was reported to the South African Police Service, and the case was transferred to the Giyani Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offenses (FCS) Unit for investigation. Sergeant Nomsa Katekani Macevele led the investigation, resulting in the arrest of the 44-year-old accused the following day, on 20 February 2024.
The court subsequently found the accused guilty and sentenced him to life imprisonment.