A 36-year-old serial rapist has been sentenced to five terms of life imprisonment plus 155 years in jail after going on a raping spree in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) spanning nine years, with the youngest victim being just 13 years old.
Muzikhona Khehla Khumbulani Mthethwa appeared in the Mtunzini High Court on Friday, where the sentence was handed down.
This, after the court found him guilty on seven counts of rape, two counts of attempted murder, three counts of robbery, as well as housebreaking and assault.
Reign of terror
Police spokesperson Colonel Robert Netshiunda said Mthethwa, who was terrorising the areas of Richards Bay, KwaMbonambi and Empangeni, started his raping spree in March 2017.
“He raped a woman and strangled her with the intention to kill her at KwaMbonambi. During his cold-blooded raping spree, Mthethwa also came across three women in Richards Bay. He fired a shot at one woman and raped the other whilst forcing the other victims to witness the act.
“With police realizing that there was a serial rapist on the loose, a team of dedicated detectives from the Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences (FCS) Unit connected the dots and Mthethwa was stopped on his tracks in 2021,” Netshiunda said.
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Arrest
Netshiunda said police officers worked around the clock to bring Mthethwa to book.
“His reign of terror ended when he was arrested and charged on 21 counts, inclusive of rape, attempted murder, business robbery, house breaking and assault. His youngest rape victim was a 13-year-old girl whom he raped after breaking into the house she was sleeping in.”
He said Mthethwa’s name will be entered into the National Register for Sex Offenders.
Rape of mother
Meanwhile, a 32-year-old man who raped and assaulted his mother was given a life sentence by the Ngwelezane regional court
National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) spokesperson Natasha Ramkisson-Kara said the offences took place in the Nseleni area near Empangeni, KwaZulu-Natal, in 2024.
She added that the mother and son lived in the same homestead but in separate rondavels.
In court, the mother’s statement was read out. She described feeling horrified and violated, saying she never imagined her own child would commit such a crime against her.
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