A 32-year-old Northern Cape man, Lionel Potse, has been sentenced to life in prison for raping a 31-year-old woman.
A 32-YEAR-OLD Northern Cape man, Lionel Potse, has been sentenced to life in prison for raping a 31-year-old woman.
Provincial police spokesperson Sergeant Mahlomola Kareli reported that the incident took place on December 1, 2018, at around 1am in Jacobsdal. As the victim was walking home, Potse grabbed her from behind, forced her into an abandoned building, and violated her.
Following the rape ordeal, Potse compelled the victim to walk alongside him. Upon encountering a group of people, she asked to use a toilet, seizing the opportunity to escape. She was then taken to the Jacobsdal police station, where cases of kidnapping and rape were opened.
Captain Cor-Marie Herbst of the Koffiefontein SAPS Family Violence, Child Protection, and Sexual Offences unit led the investigation, working together with National Prosecution Authority advocate Johan de Vries.
Potse was arrested four days later in Ritchie. On October 25, 2024, the Jacobsdal Regional Court sentenced him to five years for kidnapping and life imprisonment for rape.