Johannesburg – A 33-year-old man who posed as a traditional healer has been given life imprisonment for raping a 17-year-old girl.
According to National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) regional spokesperson for the KZN Division, Natasha Ramkisson-Kara, the man was sentenced at the Madadeni Regional Court.
Ramkisson-Kara said that prior to the rape, the man befriended the girl’s mother, pretending to be a traditional healer.
"From his frequent visits to them, he realised that the girl often got sick and would be taken to the hospital. He suggested to the mother that he could heal the girl with his traditional medicine so she need not go to the hospital. Her mother agreed to the proposal," said Ramkisson-Kara.
The afternoon the man committed the offence, he fetched the girl from her home, telling her mother that he would take her to the river for a cleansing ritual, followed by a prayer meeting with the other congregants.
"The girl went with him. However, he took her to his house under the guise of waiting for the other congregants to arrive. There he forcefully undressed her and raped her twice, only releasing her in the early hours of the following morning.
"The girl immediately reported her encounter to her sister and to her mother, and the matter was reported to the police. The girl was taken to the Madadeni Thuthuzela Care Centre, where she received medical and psychosocial assistance. The man was arrested shortly after," she said.
Regional Court prosecutor Scelo Simphiwe Hlela submitted a victim-impact statement compiled by the girl and facilitated by court preparation officer Masande Mdiya.
According to the NPA, in her statement, the girl said that the incident left her traumatised, embarrassed, and with psychological scars.
"She said that she had been a virgin, and that was her pride as a young girl," added the statement.
The Star