An 84-year-old woman who was brutally raped and stabbed in her own home in Aliwal North, Eastern Cape, has finally received justice, with her attacker sentenced to life imprisonment more than two years after the horrific crime.

The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) welcomed the life sentence imposed on 20-year-old Tshepo Majela by the Maletswai Regional Court following his conviction for the rape of the elderly woman on 7 October 2023.

The case was initially difficult to solve because Majela was unknown to the victim and investigators had no immediate leads.

The breakthrough came when Majela was arrested in connection with an unrelated robbery. Investigators obtained a buccal sample from him and sent it for forensic analysis.

The resulting DNA profile matched evidence collected during the investigation into the rape of the 84 year old woman.

Further forensic testing confirmed the match, linking Majela to the attack and paving the way for his prosecution.

According to evidence before the court, the victim had locked her home and gone to sleep with a light switched on.

During the night, she woke after hearing the light being switched off.

When she opened her eyes, she found an unknown man standing over her with a knife pressed against her throat.

Majela threatened her before dragging her from her bed and sexually assaulting her.

Despite the threats, the elderly woman screamed for help.

Majela then assaulted and stabbed her before fleeing the scene.

State prosecutor Anele Magibile argued that the brutality of the attack, the victim’s advanced age and her vulnerability justified the harshest possible sentence.

The State told the court that Majela had violated the sanctity of the victim’s home and turned what should have been a place of safety into the scene of a violent sexual attack.

The court agreed and sentenced Majela to life imprisonment.

He was also declared unfit to possess a firearm and ordered to have his particulars entered into the National Register for Sex Offenders.

Eastern Cape Director of Public Prosecutions Advocate Samkelo Mtwana welcomed the sentence and praised the prosecution and investigation teams for pursuing the case despite the perpetrator initially being unidentified.

“This sentence sends a strong message that the NPA will relentlessly pursue justice for victims of sexual offences, regardless of how much time has passed since the commission of the crime,” Mtwana said.

He described the victim as particularly vulnerable because of her advanced age and said the brutality of the attack was deeply concerning.

The NPA also commended Magibile and Detective Warrant Officer Mokheseng, whose work, together with forensic investigators, helped bring the perpetrator to justice.

The case highlights the particular vulnerability of older people to violent crime, although nationally comparable statistics specifically breaking down rape victims by age are limited.

Statistics South Africa’s Victims of Crime Survey has previously recorded sexual offences among older persons, but the data is not directly comparable with SAPS’s annual reported crime statistics. Stats SA’s 2021/22 data showed that older women accounted for a substantial share of crimes recorded against older persons overall, although the number of reported sexual offences in that age group was too small for some detailed estimates to be published.

More recent official figures show the broader scale of sexual violence in South Africa. The Department of Justice and Constitutional Development, citing national research, says about 9.8% of women have experienced sexual violence, amounting to approximately 2.1 million women.

SAPS does not currently publish its headline quarterly rape statistics with a detailed age breakdown for victims, making it difficult to establish the exact number of elderly women raped nationally each year. Its crime statistics show that thousands of rapes continue to be reported, with 8,517 rape cases recorded nationally in the third quarter of the 2025/26 financial year.

Cases involving elderly victims have nevertheless resulted in severe sentences.

In July 2025, the Bloemfontein Regional Court sentenced 22 year old Mosala Benito Ellester to life imprisonment after he was convicted of housebreaking with intent to rape and rape in the attack on a 64 year old woman in Phelindaba. The victim was asleep in her home when the accused entered through a bathroom window and raped her. He was also declared unfit to possess a firearm and his particulars were entered into the sex offenders register.

In another case highlighted by SAPS, a 28 year old man was sentenced to life imprisonment plus three years for raping a 101 year old woman in Zaiplaas in July 2024.

For the 84 year old Aliwal North victim, however, the latest development brings a measure of accountability after a crime that initially appeared to have no identifiable perpetrator.

The NPA said it remained committed to ensuring that perpetrators of sexual offences, particularly those who target vulnerable members of society, are held accountable.

For the elderly victim, the message from the court was clear: justice does not expire with age, and neither does the pursuit of those who prey on the vulnerable.