Online Reporter
Thupeyo Muleya
A ZIMBABWEAN man has been caged for life in South Africa after a spine-chilling 2020 bush rape and robbery attack that left a female jogger traumatised and battered.
Mulero Nyangero (32), a father of two from Pretoria West, was slapped with a life sentence by the Pretoria Magistrate’s Court for rape, and a further five years for aggravated robbery. The court ruled the sentences would run concurrently and banned him from ever owning a firearm.
According to South Africa’s National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), Nyangero and two accomplices pounced on the unsuspecting victim as she jogged along Kloof Street, dragging her into the bushes where he brutally raped her while the other thugs beat her and held her at knifepoint.
The terrified woman was forced to transfer cash via cellphone banking before the trio vanished into the shadows, leaving her tied up and bleeding. In a twist of strength, she managed to untie herself and flagged down a passing car for help.
“She ran to the road and got a lift home before reporting the matter to Pretoria West Police,” said NPA spokesperson Lumka Mahanjana.
A manhunt was launched, and Nyangero was finally nabbed at a tavern in Pretoria West in February 2021. He has been behind bars since.
During trial, Nyangero pleaded not guilty, claiming his innocence. But Advocate Chester Molaba tore apart his defence, presenting hard-hitting testimony from the victim and detectives that sealed his fate.
In a last-ditch attempt for mercy, Nyangero begged the court for leniency, citing his marriage, fatherhood, and four years in remand prison.
“Adv Molaba argued that Nyangero was remorseless, and his crimes were vicious and inhumane – a glaring example of the gender-based violence scourge plaguing the nation,” said Mahanjana.
