Rialivhuwa Emmanuel Lurale (35) from Lwamondo village outside Thohoyandou was sentenced to life imprisonment in the Sibasa Regional Court on Monday (31st) for the rape of a minor.
The victim (who cannot be named to protect her identity), was only 13 years old at the time of the incident. She told the court that she had encountered Lurale, whom she knew well as he was her stepfather, in December of 2015 while she and her friend were walking back home from the village's spaza shop. Lurale, who no longer lived with the girl's mother, approached them and promised to buy her (the victim) Christmas clothes, so she left with him. He took her to his village, where he locked her inside his shack for three days and repeatedly raped her.
Lurale was arrested after the friend went to the girl's mother and told her that her daughter had been taken by her stepfather. The matter was reported to the police, who rescued the child at Lurale's shack. Lurale pleaded not guilty to the charge.
The spokesperson for the Limpopo Division of the National Prosecution Authority (NPA), Mashudu Malabi-Dzhangi, said that the State, represented by Advocate Rabelani Mutsinda Makhera, had had to prove the case to link the accused (Lurale) to the offence, as no DNA had been available. The J88 (medical report) was submitted to corroborate the evidence of the forensic nurse who testified on the injuries the victim had sustained during the ordeal. The Victim Impact Report of the victim and her mother were also submitted during sentencing, which was prepared by probation officer Lindelani Mukwevho.
"During the trial, the victim (who is now 22 years old) told the court that she was traumatised after the incident. She became argumentative and experienced nightmares. Her mother also testified that she spent sleepless nights as her daughter cried a lot after the incident and failed her grades at school. She became absent-minded and sought counselling from the Thuthuzela Care Centre, where social workers and psychologists helped her quite a lot and her performance also improved at school," said Malabi-Dzhangi.
The pre-sentence report for the accused was also read to the court and handed in as an exhibit. The probation officer, Mpho Matodzi, recommended that the accused be sentenced to life imprisonment. The presiding officer, Mr Maruping Mabitsela, agreed with the State and sentenced the accused to life imprisonment for rape.