Online Reporter
Sukulwenkosi Dube-Matutu [email protected]
A 20-YEAR-OLD Gwanda man has been jailed 19 years for raping his intellectually challenged neighbour and assaulting the woman’s grandmother.
Brian Farasi from Mawane Village pleaded not guilty to rape and assault when he appeared before Gwanda regional magistrate, Mrs Sithembiso Ndebele, but was convicted due to overwhelming evidence.
Prosecuting, Ms Zanele Sithole, said Farasi raped the woman aged 34 and then assaulted her 73-year-old grandmother after she caught him in the act.
“On 12 March 2018 at around 5PM, the complainant’s grandmother left the complainant alone at home while she went to check her maize fields. After about 30 minutes the complainant’s grandmother came back home and upon arrival at here yard, she heard the complainant screaming,” she said.
“She rushed to the dining room window, which was open and she saw the accused person lying on top of the complainant having sexual intercourse with her.
“The complainant’s grandmother asked the accused what he was doing and he got off the complainant and went out through the door and ran away towards the direction of the main road,” she said.
Ms Sithole said after running for a distance Farasi came back after a few minutes and found the old woman standing at the gate.
The accused person picked up at stone and struck the complainant once on the head.
Ms Sithole said the old woman picked up a stick in a bid to protect herself but the accused person overpowered her and struck her with the stick. The accused person fled from the scene.
Ms Sithole said the old woman went to her neighbour’s homestead where she reported what had transpired. The matter was later reported to the police leading to the arrest of the accused person.
In passing her sentence, Mrs Ndebele said while the accused person had pleaded not guilty to the charges the evidence, which had been presented before the court indicated that the accused person was guilty.
She said the accused person had agreed to have been at the complainant’s homestead on the day when the incident occurred, although he denied attacking the two women. She said the accused person failed to satisfactorily explain why he was at the complainant’s homestead.
Mrs Ndebele said there is no indication of bad blood between the complainants and the accused to justify why they could have framed him.
“The accused person is a danger to society as he preyed on and victimised two women that were defenseless. He committed two serious offences, one of rape and the other of assault.
“A deterrent is necessary as it will serve as a lesson to like-minded people,” she said.
In his defense the accused person said he did not rape or assault the complainants and he was not sure why they had framed him. He said he only touched his intellectually challenged neighbour when he tried to catch her when she was falling.
The accused person said he was passing by the road when he saw the first complainant and he passed by to greet her.
He said as he was leaving the complainant tripped and almost fell and he moved in to assist her. The accused person said the old woman found him assisting her granddaughter and then concluded that he was harming her.
-@DubeMatutu
