A church pastor who raped an 11-year-old girl, a repeat sexual offender who attacked three women, and a Johannesburg police officer convicted of illegally possessing a firearm have all been handed lengthy prison sentences in separate cases as the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) continues its efforts to hold violent offenders accountable.

In Kuruman, the Regional Court sentenced 67-year-old Peter Sechogela to 20 years direct imprisonment after finding him guilty of raping an 11-year-old girl in August 2016.

According to the NPA, Sechogela went to the child’s home in Tsineng claiming he was looking for her parents. When he realised they were not there, he remained on the property. The court heard that he later followed the child into the house while she was resting and raped her.

The case was aggravated by the fact that Sechogela was a pastor at the church attended by the victim and her family. He was also a close friend of the victim’s grandfather.

The court found that his position as a trusted religious leader and respected community member made the offence even more serious because he had abused the confidence placed in him.

Regional Court Prosecutor Kekeletso Lekota presented evidence during the trial, including a Victim Impact Statement prepared with the assistance of Court Preparation Officer Beauty Moreng. The statement detailed the lasting emotional and psychological impact the rape had on the young victim.

The victim also received support through the Kuruman Thuthuzela Care Centre, where she was provided with medical treatment, trauma counselling and ongoing psychosocial services while the criminal case progressed.

In arguing for a substantial sentence, Lekota told the court that the punishment needed to reflect the seriousness of the crime and society’s rejection of gender based violence. She submitted that faith leaders are expected to protect vulnerable people rather than exploit them.

The NPA welcomed the sentence, saying it sends a clear message that people who abuse positions of trust and authority to commit sexual offences will face the full consequences of the law.

In another Northern Cape case, the Jankempdorp Regional Court sentenced serial rapist Piet Goitsemodimo Letebele to an effective 25 years direct imprisonment after convicting him of multiple violent offences committed against three women between December 2020 and October 2023.

Letebele was convicted on three counts of kidnapping, three counts of rape, two counts of common assault, two counts of assault with intent to do grievous bodily harm, one count of theft and one count of attempted assault with intent to do grievous bodily harm.

The court ordered that the various prison terms run concurrently with the 25-year sentence imposed for one of the rape convictions, resulting in an effective prison term of 25 years.

Evidence showed that the first victim was grabbed while walking home from a tavern before being dragged to a nearby water canal where she was repeatedly raped.

The second victim, a 53-year-old woman with a significant hearing impairment and the intellectual capacity of a 10-year-old child, was attacked near a gate before being taken to an open field where she was assaulted, strangled and raped twice.

The third victim was walking home with a companion when she was attacked by Letebele and another man. She was taken to a house where she was repeatedly raped and assaulted with a golf club.

Medical evidence, witness testimony, expert reports and identification parade evidence linked Letebele to the offences.

During the trial, Letebele claimed that two of the sexual encounters were consensual and denied involvement in the third attack. The court rejected his version as false beyond reasonable doubt.

The State also presented Victim Impact Statements describing the severe physical, emotional and psychological trauma suffered by the victims.

The court heard that Letebele has four previous convictions, including one for rape, one for sexual assault and two for assault with intent to do grievous bodily harm. Prosecutors successfully argued that he should be regarded as a serial rapist because of his repeated pattern of violent offending.

Meanwhile, in the Free State, the Senekal Regional Court sentenced Johannesburg police officer Mtokozo Mchunu to 12 years direct imprisonment after convicting him of unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition.

The conviction relates to an incident on 20 April 2021 when Mchunu was found inside a private residence in Senekal under suspicious circumstances.

After the homeowner contacted police, officers searched Mchunu and found him in possession of an unlicensed firearm and ammunition. He was unable to produce a valid firearm licence or any lawful authority to possess the weapon.

The State, led by Prosecutor Gert Jacobus Scholz, proved beyond reasonable doubt that Mchunu had unlawfully possessed the firearm and ammunition.

The court convicted him on both charges and, for sentencing purposes, treated the offences as one, imposing an effective sentence of 12 years direct imprisonment.

The NPA said illegal firearms continue to fuel violent crime and welcomed the sentence, adding that it demonstrates that no one, including police officers, is above the law. It also reaffirmed its commitment to prosecuting sexual offences, firearm-related crimes and other serious offences without fear, favour or prejudice.