Tenant sentenced to life behind bars for raping landlord's teenage daughter

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Durban - A man has been sentenced in the Empangeni Regional Court in Northern KwaZulu-Natal to life imprisonment for raping the teenage daughter of a woman in whose house he was a tenant, the South African Police Service (SAPS) in KwaZulu-Natal said on Saturday. On April 18, 2018, a 14-year-old girl from Macekeni Reserve in Ngwelezane went outside the house to wash her school uniform after she returned home from school, Colonel Thembeka Mbele said in a statement. A few minutes later, a friend of the girl came looking for her, and she was told that the girl was outside washing her school uniform. "They checked for her outside, but she was nowhere to the found. The mother began to worry and searched the yard, when she heard screams coming from one of the rooms in her premises. She went to investigate and was shattered to find her tenant Petros Lungu, 50, raping her 14-year-old daughter. "Fully aware that she cannot take the law into her own hands, she locked the suspect in the room and called the police," Mbele said.

Police officers from Empangeni arrived at the scene soon afterwards and arrested the suspect. The docket was transferred to the Empangeni family violence, child protection, and sexual offences (FCS) unit.

The victim alleged that while she was washing her school uniform, she was called by the perpetrator to his room. He locked the door, overpowered, and raped her. She unsuccessfully attempted to fight him off.

"She was relieved when she saw her mother entering the room because she knew it was all over and she was safe. The accused made several court appearances until he was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment by the regional court on 29 January," Mbele said.

KwaZulu-Natal police commissioner Lt-Gen Khombinkosi Jula lauded the police officers, the girl's mother, and justice department officials for ensuring the perpetrator was brought to book and sentenced.

“Children are very trusting and it’s very disturbing when the people they trust turn out to be the evil ones. The young lady trusted the accused and didn’t think one day he was going turn against her and abuse her.

"We thank the police and the justice system for always protecting women and children against the perpetrators. We also applaud the mother for not taking the law into her on hands and for trusting the justice systems to do what it does best,” Jula said.

African News Agency (ANA)