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- The Bellville Magistrate's Court sentenced Luzuko Kama to 15 years in jail after he raped a girl in the house next to his.
- Luzuko managed to unlock his neighbour's house and raped the eight-year-old while her grandmother was away.
- He denied raping the girl, but offered transport money to take the child to a doctor and to the police station.
The Bellville Magistrate's Court has sentenced Luzuko Kama to 15 years in jail for raping an eight-year-old girl.
According to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), the girl was alone at her grandmother's home on 26 May 2018, after the grandmother went to bake bread at a nearby home.
Kama, 24, was the grandmother's neighbour's son.
"When the grandmother returned home, she noticed a key in the door and knocked, thinking it was her eldest son who has returned home," regional NPA spokesperson Eric Ntabazalila said in a statement.
She asked him how he got inside the house, and he replied by saying that he had his own key and suddenly left the house.
Ntabazalila said the grandmother noticed her granddaughter was still awake and asked why she was still awake at that time.
"The child cried and told her that Kama had raped her," he added.
She then took the child to Kama's home and confronted him, and he denied everything, but offered transport money to take the child to a doctor and to the police station.
"He was later arrested, but he put up a version, which was later rejected by the court," said Ntabazalila.
After the victim, her grandmother and the doctor were called to testify, Kama was found guilty and sentenced to 15 years.
Prosecutor Yolanda Pretorius welcomed the sentence.
"The child was assisted by the court preparation officer, Ms Lindiwe Corry Mpama-Ngwevele before the trial, to ensure that she was calm and relaxed when giving evidence," she said.
"She also obtained the victim impact statement which assisted the State, as the probation officer could unfortunately not deliver a victim impact report. The importance of the work done by court preparation officers cannot be emphasised enough in our success stories."
