WORCESTER – The Worcester Regional Court on 14 September sentenced David Chauke (33), a Zimbabwean National, to life imprisonment for Trafficking in Persons and other related offenses.

 Chauke was  convicted on 16 April 2026.

He was sentenced to five years imprisonment on a charge of abduction, life imprisonment for Trafficking in Persons, life imprisonment for rape, 15 years for sexual exploitation of children and 12 months for Contravention of the Immigration Act.

The sentences imposed run concurrently with the sentence imposed on count 2 which is Trafficking in Persons. Effectively, the accused will serve direct life imprisonment.

The accused was entered into the National Register for Sex Offenders and was further declared unfit to possess a firearm.

Chauke’s conviction and sentence stems from November 2020, when information was received about a 12-year-old girl who was living with an adult male as his wife in Robertson.

The matter was reported to the Hawks for probing, which led to the subsequent arrest of the accused in November 2020. Chauke was remanded in custody until his sentence.

Also Read: Four arrested for trafficking in persons, rape and attempted murder

The Hawks’ Provincial Head, Major General Mathipa Makgato applauded the collaborative efforts by the multi-disciplinary team comprising of the Hawks, Department of Social Development, INTERPOL, SAPS Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offenses Unit (FCS) and the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) that brought about this sentence.

He said: “The exploitation of our young children by the hard-core criminals will never be tolerated and we will ensure that we fullfil our constitutional mandate to protect our future generation.”