Sophia Michaels
Nkosikhona Ntshalintshali
A 36-year-old serial r*pist, Nkosikhona Ntshalintshali, has been sentenced to life imprisonment and an additional 110 years imprisonment by the Breyten High Court in Mpumalanga, South Africa, for the string of r*pes he committed in Piet Retief.
The accused pleaded guilty to the crimes and was subsequently convicted on four counts of r*pe, four counts of robbery with aggravating circumstances, two counts of kidnapping and two counts of housebreaking with intent to commit a crime.
The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) Regional spokesperson, DPP Mpumalanga, Monica Nyuswa, in a statement on Thursday, June 6, 2024, said these offences were committed in Mafred Homes, Phola Park and Kempville Magadeni Section in Piet Retief.
During the period between November 2008 to June 2009, the accused would break into his victims’ homes, threaten them with a knife and rob them of their valuables. He would at times assault them. Some of the victims were accosted while walking on the street and dragged to secluded areas.
In one incident which happened on 11 November 2008, the complainant was walking in the vicinity of Mafred Homes when she came across the accused who demanded a cellphone. He dragged her to the railway line and r*ped her. The complainant did not know the perpetrator but reported her ordeal to the police.
Ntshalintshali together with his two unknown perpetrators continued with his r*pe spree again on 05 June 2009, when they confronted two complainants, a man, and a woman who were walking on the street in the Kempville Magadeni Section.
The accused and his co-perpetrator demanded the victims’ cellular phones and assaulted a man with a knobkierie, injuring his leg and taking his shoes. Furthermore, the accused threatened a woman with a knife and all three of them took turns to r*pe her and thereafter fled the scene with her clothes.
Through police investigations, the accused was arrested in 2020 and was linked to the crimes through DNA.
In aggravation of the sentence, Senior State Advocate Themba Lusenga argued that the accused has expressed regret but shown no remorse for his actions.
The amount of violence used to commit these offences was so severe that it can be brushed aside and go unpunished. The accused had no choice but to plead guilty because the evidence against him was overwhelming and the state asked the court to impose a prescribed minimum sentence.
The state further presented the victim impact statements compiled by court preparation officer Lindokuhle Sithole, which gave details about the trauma caused by the accused crimes in their lives.
The court found no substantial and compelling circumstances warranting deviation from the prescribed ordained sentence.
The accused was sentenced to life and 110 years imprisonment and the court further declared him unfit to possess a firearm in terms of Section 103 of the Firearms Control Act 60 of 2000.
The Acting Director of Public Prosecutions, Sonja Ntuli commended the Prosecutor, Court Preparation Officer and the police for the meticulous collection and presentation of evidence.
“This sentence is testimony of our commitment in the fight against the scourge of gender-based violence in our communities and it brings closure to the victims and their families,” Ntuli said.
