A 19-year-old man from Pella has been found guilty of raping his 15-year-old friend by the Regional Court sitting in Pofadder on Tuesday, 10 February 2026.
The court heard that the accused and the victim had been friends for a long period before entering into a sexual relationship, which commenced in December 2022. In January 2025, the minor fell pregnant, prompting the Department of Health to notify her mother of the situation.
The matter was subsequently reported to the police, leading to the arrest of the suspect. He pleaded guilty to the charges and appeared in court on several occasions following the investigation. The case was assigned to Detective Constable Franklin Afrikaner of the Pofadder Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences (FCS) Unit.
The court found him guilty of statutory rape. He was sentenced to five years imprisonment, wholly suspended for five years, on condition that he is not found guilty of the same offense during the suspension period. Additionally, the court declared him unfit to possess a firearm.