A rapist’s reign of terror has officially come to an end, with the Estcourt Regional Court sentencing the 24-year-old man to two life terms with 15 years’ imprisonment for two cases of rape and robbery.
According to the provincial spokesperson, Captain Nqobile Gwala, the accused terrorised the Ematsheni community during 2017, raping two women.
The first incident occurred in September 2017, when a 25-year-old woman was accosted by the man, who took her to the cliff at Obonjaneni Reserve. It was here that he raped her, before robbing his distraught victim of her belongings.
A case was opened at the Ematsheni Police Station shortly afterwards.
Two months after the crime, in November 2017, a 17-year-old was accosted by two men. They assaulted her with an iron rod at Gudlucingo Reserve, before raping her repeatedly.
Both dockets were assigned to the Ladysmith Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences Unit for investigation.
While the victims could not identify the accused, the investigating officer refused to give up and traced the accused, linking him through DNA. Sifiso Nqubuko was then taken into custody for prosecution.
Following intense investigations, Nqubuko was sentenced to life imprisonment for each rape and 15 years imprisonment for robbery with aggravating circumstances.
The KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Commissioner, Lieutenant General Khombinkosi Jula hailed the sentence handed to the rapist. “We are glad that the accused received a befitting sentence for his dreadful acts,” he said.
Well done to the investigating officer for ensuring the accused is now paying for the crimes he committed.
