Byline: Nonjabuliso Nhlambo
12 June 2024
63-year-old pensioner John Zwelibanzi Dlamini appeared before the Secunda magistrate court on Monday, 10 June 2024 on charges of rape of his granddaughter.
According to the victim’s statement, the victim was at her place of residence when the accused, who is her grandmother’s brother, showed up at her doorstep, claiming to be visiting his sister on 22 October 2022.
The victim opened the door for the accused, who later followed her to her bedroom, thereby raping her and leaving as though nothing happened.
The victim, her boyfriend, and her grandmother testified before court, and the court was satisfied that the victim’s testimony was consistent, from reporting the matter at home to the police, to the nurses, and while in court.
The court found the accused guilty after failing to give an alibi of his whereabouts on the said date.
The accused was then given a chance to plead with the court and also present exemtional circumstances before judgment was handed down. Dlamini told the court that when he was arrested, after being kept in custody, he became dizzy and fainted as he was anxious, so if the court sentenced him for the crime, it would be the end of him as he is not guilty of the crime.
The honourable Magistrate Cupido handed him a sentence of 15 years imprisonment, also considering the fact that he was a first-time offender.
