AN 18-year-old teenager has been sentenced to nine years imprisonment without an option of a fine after raping and impregnating his 14-year-old cousin.
The accused was charged with contravening the Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence Act 15/2018. He committed the offence between 2024 and 2025 at Lundzi.
The offence committed by the accused was alleged to have been accompanied by aggravating factors interms of the Criminal Procedure and Evidence Act of 1938 as amended. During court proceedings, the survivor’s aunt confirmed to the court that the complainant was her sister’s child and she was 14 years old.
The survivor stated that she stayed at the accused’s home after her mother passed away. Narrating her ordeal, she said sometime in 2024, while sitting on the couch with the accused, sharing a blanket, the accused started touching her inappropriately. Three days later, when her aunt was away, the accused locked her inside the house and started having unlawful sexual intercourse with her.
She said this went on until May 2025 where she missed her period, an indication that she was pregnant. She stated that her teacher noticed the change in her body, and took her to Lundzi Clinic, she (teacher) was the first person she informed about what the accused person had been doing to her.
The survivor stated that her aunt was then informed by the Bhunya Police about her ordeal after the matter had been reported when she was taken to Mankayane Government Hospital for a medical examination.
The teacher informed the court that she started noticing bod changeson the girl, hence the reason why she took her for a medical checkup.
The accused was arrested by Bhunya police and formally charged with the contravention of the Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence Act 15/2018. He also admitted to having unlawful sexual intercourse with the survivor without
using a condom.
The accused pleaded for a lenient sentence on grounds that he was still a teenager who survived on odd jobs and that he was driven by immaturity when commiting the offence. Manzini Principal Magistrate David Khumalo gave hima custodial sentence of nine years.
