Adfali Ndlovu
was convicted of rape by Bulawayo regional magistrate, Mrs Sibonginkosi
Mnkandla.
In passing the
sentence, Mrs Mnkandla condemned Ndlovu’s actions, saying he targeted a
vulnerable victim who is a minor.
Ms Mnkandla
added that Ndlovu has no defence to the charges levelled against him.
The prosecutor,
Ms Nomthandazo Mafu told the court that the incident occurred on September 14
last year after the victim in the company of her grandparents went to Ndlovu’s
shrine intending to be cleansed of evil spirits.
This was after
the family had conducted a ceremony, which allegedly revealed that the victim
had evil spirits, which required cleansing.
“Ndlovu
requested the victim to sleep at his house since the ritual was to be done the
following day. The grandparents complied and left the victim in the company of
Ndlovu,” said Ms Mafu.
During the
early hours of the following day, Ndlovu took the victim to a bushy area and
ordered her to remove her clothes before bathing her. He then grabbed the
complainant, pushed her to the ground and raped her.
The court heard
that after committing the offence, Ndlovu threatened to kill the complainant if
she reported the matter to anyone.
The matter came
to light on September 22 last year after the victim had returned to boarding
school.
“The
complainant’s schoolmate found her crying and upon quizzing her, the victim
revealed that she had been raped by Ndlovu,” said Ms Mafu.
A report was
made to school authorities who in turn made a police report leading to Ndlovu’s
arrest.
In aggravation,
Ms Mafu submitted that Ndlovu committed a very serious offence because he raped
a vulnerable minor.
“The offender
betrayed the trust bestowed upon him by the victim’s parents when he raped
her,” she said. Chronicle
