A 34-YEAR-OLD man was yesterday slapped with an 18-year jail term after being convicted of raping his daughter in February this year.
BY DESMOND CHINGARANDE
The convict, whose details are being withheld to protect the identity of the victim, will, however, serve a 12-year effective jail term after regional magistrate Themba Kuwanda suspended four years on condition of good behaviour.
According to prosecutor Valerie Ngoma, the incident occurred on February 2 this year at around 9pm, when the girl, who was sleeping in her bedroom, suddenly woke up only to find her father busy undressing her.
The court heard the victim tried to scream for help, but the convict shoved a piece of cloth into her mouth and at the same time tying her hands.
The court further heard after subduing his victim, the convict raped his daughter after which he threatened her not to spill the beans, but left the room without untying her. On the next day, the State said, at around 5am the convict got into the girl’s bedroom and untied her hands and also removed the cloth from her mouth.
The victim is said to have gone to school and upon arrival she wrote a letter to her teacher informing her about what had happened. The teacher then informed her workmate and a report was made to the police, leading to the convict’s arrest.
