It is believed that the accused forced a 14-year-old girl, who is said to have the mental capacity of a three-year-old child, into a bedroom where he raped her.
A FORMER police officer, who was found guilty of raping a mentally disabled girl, will serve 20 years behind bars after he was sentenced in the De Aar Regional Court on Tuesday.
Northern Cape police spokesperson Colonel Mashay Gamieldien said the incident took place on January 3 at the home of the accused’s grandmother in Noupoort.
“It is believed that the accused forced a 14-year-old girl, who is said to have the mental capacity of a three-year-old child, into a bedroom where he raped her,” said Gamieldien.
She added the accused threatened to harm the girl if she dared to tell anyone about the incident.
“The rape was witnessed by the girl’s five-year-old cousin, who later reported it to her grandmother.
“The accused was arrested on January 5. The accused was found guilty of rape and sentenced on the same day (November 3) to 20 years’ imprisonment.”
Gamieldien said the accused was also declared unfit to possess a firearm and his name was recorded in the National Register for Sex Offenders.
The commander of the SAPS Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences unit in De Aar, Captain Wietz Coetzee, commended the investigating officer, Sergeant Ilze Fan, for her meticulous investigative work on the case.
