Teacher jailed 30 years for stepdaughter rape

A 58-YEAR-OLD Kezi teacher who raped his 21-year-old stepdaughter on four different occasions at knifepoint was on Monday sentenced to an effective 30 years in jail.

The sexual assaults took place between February and March, each time the man visited their home in Mpopoma suburb, Bulawayo during weekends.

The man who cannot be named to protect the victim’s identity was convicted of rape by Western Commonage regional magistrate Mrs Sibongile Marondedze due to overwhelming evidence following a full trial.

Prosecuting, Ms Christine Manyika said on the first occasion sometime in February, the teacher arrived in Bulawayo from Kezi and ordered the complainant’s siblings to go and play outside the house.

“The complainant went to take a bath and after finishing she went to her room to change clothes during which the accused walked in without knocking and found the woman naked,” said Ms Manyika.

The court heard that the teacher closed the door and locked it before pushing the complainant to the bed, covered her mouth with a piece of cloth, and raped her. After committing the offence, the man threatened to kill the victim’s mother if she reported the matter. Out of fear, the complainant kept the matter under wraps.

On the second occasion during the same month, the accused stormed into the complainant’s bedroom and removed her clothes before raping her.

“The accused also threatened to kill the victim’s mother if she revealed her ordeal and the woman kept quiet,” said Ms Manyika.

On the third occasion during the same month, the accused sent their neighbour’s children to call the complainant from her friend’s house

“Upon her arrival, the accused ordered his stepdaughter to prepare lunch for him. As the complainant was going to the kitchen, the accused diverted her and ordered her to proceed to her bedroom where he raped her at knifepoint,” said Ms Manyika.

Sometime in March, during one of his weekend visits in Bulawayo, the accused found the complainant sleeping alone in her room and ordered her to remove her clothes before raping her.

“To silence her, the accused told the complainant that he was well connected hence reporting the matter was a waste of time for the complainant,” said Ms Manyika.

Fed up with being abused, the complainant decided to inform her brother who is in South Africa via WhatsApp. The brother in turn alerted the victim’s mother who accompanied her daughter to the ZRP Western Commonage to report the matter leading to the teacher’s arrest.