Bulawayo man jailed 16 years for raping 13-year-old cousin

A 22-year-old Bulawayo man has been sentenced to 16 years in prison for raping his 13-year-old cousin while she was asleep. The man from Entumbane suburb, who cannot be named to protect the identity of the minor, was convicted of rape by Western Commonage regional magistrate Mr Pasipanodya Maturure.

Prosecuting, Ms Christina Manyika told the court that the offence occurred in October last year while the complainant was asleep in the sitting room alongside another cousin. The accused had been sleeping in the kitchen at the time.
According to the State, the accused entered the sitting room during the night and quietly got into the complainant’s blanket before forcibly removing her skirt and underwear.

“The accused person went to the sitting room, sneaked into the complainant’s blanket and forcibly removed her skirt and panties before raping her. While he was doing this, the complainant did not feel anything as she was asleep and only woke up when she felt pain,” said Ms Manyika.
The court heard that the complainant woke up in the middle of the incident and found the accused on top of her, naked and raping her.

Ms Manyika said the complainant reported the incident the following morning to another cousin, who later took her to the cousin’s mother. Upon being informed, the woman reprimanded the accused and advised the complainant to report the matter to her biological mother, with whom she was not staying at the time.
However, the matter was not immediately reported to the authorities and remained undisclosed for several months.

The court further heard that after some weeks, the complainant began suffering from stomach ulcers and was taken to a pharmacy for treatment by her aunt, although the abuse had still not been reported.
The offence eventually came to light in April when the complainant visited another aunt in Inyathi and disclosed the ordeal through a letter. The aunt then informed the complainant’s mother, who escorted her daughter to the police, leading to the arrest of the accused.

The complainant was subsequently referred to hospital for medical examination and treatment.