A MPUMALANGA rape victim who waited 10 years for justice to prevail is not satisfied with the sentence given to her rapist.
Putrus Swart (51) was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment by the Piet Retief Magistrates Court on Monday, 22 April, for the rape of his former domestic worker in Piet Retief in 2014.
It's reported that the 47-year-old woman was busy doing chores in the Swart family household, and the accused's wife was away taking their children to school when the incident happened. The accused suddenly grabbed the victim from behind and wrestled her to the ground.
The victim attempted to resist. However, the accused overpowered her and raped her.
Shortly after the incident, the accused's wife arrived and found the complainant crying. When she asked what happened, the complainant reported the ordeal to her.
For the past years, the defence has delayed the trial, disputing the forensic expert evidence about the accused's blood samples. As a result, the matter was taken to the High Court for review, and the court ordered that new DNA samples be taken.
The DNA results positively linked the accused to the offence; then, the matter had to be sent back to the trial court.
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As much as the victim is relieved that justice has finally prevailed, she told Daily Sun that she strongly believes the punishment is not too harsh for someone who made her life miserable.
She said she had to move from one shelter to another as her life was in danger. The victim said she had suffered a lot as she was waiting for justice to prevail.
"I'm not happy with the sentence. This is not what I expected," she said.
She said that what saddens her is that she will never work in her entire life because she was allegedly badly assaulted by Swart's wife.
The woman said she wants the state to review the sentence and impose a sentence that will send a strong message to other perpetrators.
Provincial National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) spokeswoman, Monica Nyuswa, said the court didn't deviate from the prescribed minimum sentence; the sentence imposed on the accused is the prescribed minimum sentence for a single rape of an adult.
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