The North West High court, sitting at Mogwase Regional court, sentenced Calvin Khunwana, 32, to two life terms for the rape and murder of a seven-year-old minor.
The court also slapped him with an additional five years for kidnapping and another five years for defeating the end of justice.
Khunwana’s conviction emanated from monstrous crime that occurred in Photsaneng village, near Rustenburg, on July 30, 2020.
During the trial, the court heard how a convicted rapist and murderer invited into his home a little girl who trusted him.
According to evidence presented in the courtroom, the man then took advantage of the young girl, raping her before killing her.
Henry Mamothame, the spokesperson for the North West National Prosecuting Authority, said that the evidence in court pointed out that Khunwana whom the child trusted, was responsible for the heinous crime committed against the little girl.
Khunwana felt his anger boil inside him as he saw his victim trying to escape.
He launched himself at her, throwing her back into the house. Her friends had seen what was happening and rushed to help her.
Mamothame said it emerged in court that Khunwana grabbed her victim and chased her friends away in his yard.
He threatened to assault them before pushing his victim inside.
Khunwana then raped the child. To conceal evidence, he subsequently strangled her and placed her lifeless body under a carpet in a storage room.
Evidence showed that Khunwana took a pair of his sneakers and tried to sell them to escape the village.
Mamothame said the child’s body was later discovered at the suspect home after her friends who were playing with her pointed out where they saw her
The accused was arrested and remained in custody until the trial was completed. The evidence presented at trial showed that he had committed the crime.
Benny Kalakgosi, the state advocate, argued that the accused was well known to the deceased and he took advantage of her vulnerability.
The court found the accused guilty of the heinous crimes he committed.
Kalakgosi continued to argue that the accused raped a minor and killed her gruesomely, urging the court not to deviate from the minimum prescribed sentence.
He pointed to staggering statistics of rape and murder of minors by men, asserting that this heinous crime warrants severe punishment.
Judge Ronald Hendricks agreed with the state that the accused abused the trust relationship between himself and the child and showed no remorse.
The court then sentenced him to two life terms in prison for rape and murder of a minor.
The North West Director of Public Prosecutions, Dr Rachel Makhari Sekhaolelo, commended Advocate Kalakgosi and Warrant Officer Karel Khumalo for the conviction.
“A child’s life is one too many. We need a collaborative approach from all sectors of society to defeat this scourge,” she added.
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