adminPatience Mutsiwi Midlands Reporter
A TEENAGER (name withheld) from Silobela raped his 85-year-old grandmother before promising to fetch her water the next day to buy her silence. The rapist, 18, of Rungu Village, Chief Malisa, Silobela, yesterday appeared before Gweru Regional Magistrate Morgan Nemadire facing one count of rape.
Nemadire sentenced him to 15 years in jail.
He will however serve an effective 12 years after Nemadire suspended three years on condition of good behaviour.
The grandson pleaded guilty to the charge and asked Nemadire to be lenient with him saying he had been used by the devil to commit the offence.
“Your worship may you exercise leniency on me, I’m a very young man who wasn’t going to school. I think l was used by the devil to rape my own grandmother. Even right now, I’m still shocked about my actions,” he said. Prosecuting Kelvin Guveya told the court that on May 16, at around 11PM, the complainant was sleeping alone in her bedroom hut when she heard someone knocking on the door.
“The complainant asked who it was before she opened the door for him,” said Guveya. The court heard he ripped off his granny’s panties and raped her once.
“He promised to fetch water for her and fled into the night. The complainant got up, dressed herself and proceeded to her cousin’s homestead where she narrated the incident and spent the rest of the night there,” said Guveya.
The granny, the court heard, was escorted to the police the following day and filed a report leading to her grandson’s arrest.
derick.khumalo