JUSTICE has been served for the mum of a nine-year-old girl who had been raped by accused, Ntokozo Zikhali (30).
This comes after the Pretoria High Court, sitting in the Benoni Magistrates Court, handed down a life sentence on Thursday, 10 August.
The minor was playing with her friends at a park in Tamboville in Wattville when Zikhali approached her, picked her up and took her to a dam where he raped her before running away. The incident happened in 2021.
Advocate Eric Sihlangu read out the statement prepared by the social worker on the impact of Zikhali's acts on the child.
"We suffered a lot as why the perpetrator victimised our child. A grown-up man couldn’t control himself and he raped the child. As a parent I was left with a big wound that would never go away easily. Why did he decide to rape my child?
"I was left shattered. The perpetrator deserves to rot in jail. That's the only justice I want for my child," the letter read.
Sihlangu further explained that the mum's letter explains her daughter's behaviour after the incident.
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"The child was bright at school but after what happened to her, she couldn't concentrate at school, kept to herself, cried all the time, and she could tell she was not coping at all.
"If it wasn't for the social workers, my child was not going to change. But thank God, she's doing better at the moment and I ask for justice for my daughter," the letter reads.
Acting judge Ian Cox said the suspect had shown no remorse for his actions and was linked to the crime by DNA evidence when he sentenced him to life in prison.
He said child rape had become a pandemic in Mzansi and was one of the most horrific crimes in South Africa faced today.
Also read: Bokgabo Poo's family in deep pain
Bokgabo Poo's matter in court
Zikhali, who was allegedly arrested in the connection with the death of Bokgabo Poo, was acquitted by Judge Cox in the Pretoria High Court sitting in the Benoni Magistrates Court.
He was acquitted of rape, murder, violation of a corpse and obstruction of justice. The verdict left the parents of Bokgabo and the community in pain.
