Two Bulawayo men, including a landlord, have been sentenced to lengthy prison terms after being convicted in separate cases of rape, in incidents that shocked their communities.
Mathew Kalima Banda (48) of Sizinda and Daniel Dube (22) of Emakhandeni were sentenced to 20 years and 15 years in prison, respectively, after being found guilty of sexually abusing minors aged 11 and nine.
In a statement, Bulawayo police spokesperson Inspector Nomalanga Msebele commended the courts for their swift and decisive handling of such cases, saying the justice delivered sends a strong message to offenders.
“Sometime in December 2024 at around 10pm, an 11-year-old juvenile from Sizinda was asleep alone in the kitchen when Banda, who was her landlord, called her into his bedroom. He pushed her onto the bed, raped her and threatened her not to report the matter,” Msebele said.
Msebele said the abuse occurred again on another day in the same month under similar circumstances.
The matter came to light on February 17 this year after social workers followed up on the child’s absence from school.
Dube was given a 15-year imprisonment sentence after allegedly raping two minors, aged nine respectively in Emakhandeni, in February this year.
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