ZiMoja updates on the latest crime news in parts of the country. 

GAUTENG: The Pretoria High Court sentenced Conwell Mongezi Chauke (34) to life imprisonment for the murder of an 11-year-old Khothatso Welhelmina Tshabalala. On 29 December 2020, Chauke called Khothatso's mother while at work and threatened her over as she refused to meet with him the previous day and believed that she was taking him for a fool as he was interested in pursuing a love relationship with her. Chauke, who was in the same prayer group with the victim's mother, went to her house in Mamelodi East on the same day where he found the deceased child playing with her younger sister and the neighbour's child.

NPA spokesperson Lumka Mahanjana said Chauke lured the child under the pretence that he wanted to collect his belongings from her home. "When they got into her home, Chauke stabbed the child sixty-six times, covered her body with linen on top of her bed and fled the scene. When the neighbours could not find the child, they went to look for her at her house when they found her deceased body on top of her bed," Mahanjana said. Chauke handed himself over at Lyttleton Police and has been in custody since.

In court, Chauke denied kidnapping the child and only pleaded guilty to the charge of murder and said he was angry towards the mother of the child. Judge Jacobus Johannes Strijdom sentenced Chauke to life behind bars and said that Chauke violated the deceased constitutional right to life. Furthermore, Strijdom said Chauke was merciless when stabbing the child sixty-six times, which shows that he is a danger to society and that it is the court's responsibility to protect society from offenders like him.

NOTHERN CAPE: A 36-year-old man has been sentenced to life imprisonment by the Carnarvon Regional after he was convicted for raping his girlfriend of eight years. NPA regional spokesperson Mojalefa Senokoatsane said on November 28, 2022, the couple was preparing themselves for bed when the convict ordered the victim to take off her clothes as he was also busy undressing. "He then started forcing his girlfriend to sleep with him, and she refused as she was on her period. He nonetheless forcefully turned her around on her stomach and tried to penetrate her in the back.

The suspect then said to the complainant that if she loved him, she would allow him to penetrate her. Even though the complainant did not consent to any of this, the suspect forced himself on her," Senokoatsane said. The man continued raping his 48-year-old girlfriend even as she begged him to stop as it was painful. The woman managed to escape when the man went into another room, and she went to report the matter to the police. The accused was arrested the next day. During his appearance in court, the accused chose to abandon his bail application and was in custody until the conclusion of the matter.

In a Victim Impact Statement, the woman told the court how the events of that day had changed her life as it was done to her by a person she trusted, and she was expecting him to be her protector. "He violated her in a manner that did not show that he ever loved her. That it will take a very long time to trust people again," he added. In aggravation of sentence, state prosecutor Advocate Corrie Jonker put it to the court that a clear message needed to be sent that, even if the victim and the accused are in a relationship, if the accused is found guilty of abusing his partner, they will be sentenced accordingly.

EASTERN CAPE: A 42-year-old security guard who is accused of stabbing a learner at school appeared in the KwaBhaca Magistrates Court yesterday on charges of assault GBH. This comes after a learner was stabbed in the school premises last week Wednesday at around 8pm at the Shushu Senior Secondary School in KwaBhaca. It's alleged that the guard attacked and stabbed a female learner in the school premises. Police spokesperson Warrant Officer Majola Nkohli said the victim sustained several injuries and was rushed to hospital and the incident was reported to the police on Friday, 13 September 2024. The 20-year-old victim is still in the hospital.