The Ladybrand Regional Court has sentenced a 47-year-old man found guilty of raping his biological daughter to life imprisonment. The accused was sentenced on Thursday, 10 July, for the crime committed on 6 June 2020.
WO Mmako Mophiring, spokesperson for the Free State police, confirmed that the shocking incident had happened when the child, then eight years old, visited her father.
He said in addition to the sentence of one term of life imprisonment, which amounts to 25 years, the court ordered that the accused’s details be included in part B of the National Child Protection Register. Part B of the register in South Africa lists individuals who have been deemed unsuitable to work with children.
This list is used to prevent individuals with a history of child abuse or neglect from having unsupervised access to children in various settings. It is a crucial component of child protection efforts, alongside part A, which records information about children who have been victims of abuse.
“The accused was sentenced to life imprisonment and declared unfit to possess a firearm. He was convicted on 29 June after the court had found him guilty of raping his biological daughter,” confirmed Mophiring.
He said the sentencing was the result of an investigation by the Ladybrand Family, Child Protection and Sexual Offences unit, presenting compelling evidence.
“It appears that although the accused and the victim’s mother are divorced, they still have joint custody of the child. While her father was staying with his (now) late mother, the girl visited him. Because it was during the school holidays due to the Covid-19 outbreak, the mother picked up her daughter that same day.
“She noticed that her daughter was not walking in a normal manner. She then asked the child why she was walking differently and the child reported that her father had sexually abused her. The mother called her neighbours to help check her daughter and they observed the abnormality from her body,” said Mophiring.
“The child was referred to the local hospital for medical examination and it was discovered that the girl was sexually violated.”
Mophiring said the state had successfully opposed bail and the accused was remanded in custody until sentencing.
