Cape Town - The rape conviction of a man serving 20 years for raping and murdering a sex worker in 2014 has been set aside by a full bench in the Western Cape High Court on Tuesday.

The means that Eben Kotze will only be serving 15 years for the murder of Crystall Ann Newman, 23, handed down by Judge Babalwa Mantame on December 1, 2016.

Handing down judgment, Judge Siraj Desai said: “The facts of the matter is that the appellant found the sex worker on the street, offered her tik, she accompanied him to his room where they spent time together and even drank tea and enjoyed a sandwich. There is absence of evidence corroborating the State version of non-consensual sex There is reasonable doubt and the appellant's version is also reasonably true.”

Desai added that during the trial court Dr Mandy Date Chong had indicated that microscopic tests showed some bruises but she could not say if these were caused by consensual or non-consensual intercourse.

“I do not agree with the trial court ruling and agree with the doctor that it could have been the result of a consensual encounter."