A 44-year-old man has been sentenced to life imprisonment for raping his 17-year-old daughter in Matiyani village. The Malamulele Regional Court delivered the sentence on Tuesday, 24 February.
The incident occurred on 20 September 2023. Police said the teenager had accompanied her father to her grandfather’s grave for family rituals. After the rituals ended around 21:00, they walked home through nearby bushes, where the father allegedly attacked her.
Provincial police spokesperson Colonel Malesela Ledwaba said the victim was threatened and told not to reveal the attack. “She kept silent for months before confiding in her uncle’s wife on 19 February 2024,” Ledwaba said.
The case was reported to local police and referred to the Giyani Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences (FCS) Unit. Sergeant Nomsa Katekani Macevele led the investigation, arresting the accused the following day and successfully opposing bail.
The court sentenced the man to life imprisonment.