Kimberley - The South African Police Service (SAPS) in the Northern Cape has welcomed the 441-year prison term handed down to convicted serial rapist Ndumiso Giyani in the Northern Cape High Court in Kimberley on Friday.
Giyani had "caused havoc during his horror-run" in the communities of Kimberley, Galeshewe, and Kagisho from 2014 to 2018, SAPS spokesman Captain Sergio Kock said in a statement.
After intense investigations, Giyani was eventually linked in 2018 by his DNA to the crimes, and arrested on January 24, 2019. He was found guilty on November 11, 2019 in the Kimberley High Court on 14 counts of rape, 12 counts of robbery with aggravated circumstances, two counts of attempted robbery with aggravated circumstances, and six counts of kidnapping.
High Court Judge Mathebe Phatshoane expressed concern about the victims, especially as one of them was four months pregnant when she was raped by Giyani. She reiterated that Giyani had to be removed from society.
He was sentenced to three life imprisonments terms on three charges of rape; 19 years imprisonment terms on each of the remaining 11 charges of rape; 15 years imprisonment for each of the 12 charges of robbery with aggravated circumstances; 14 years for one charge of attempted robbery with aggravated circumstances; and five years imprisonment on each of six counts of kidnapping. The sentences would all run concurrently with the three life sentences, Kock said.
Northern Cape deputy police commissioner for crime detection Maj-Gen Koliswa Otola lauded the two investigating officers, Lt-Col Marli Strydom of the Galeshewe family violence, child protection, and sexual offences (FCS) unit and Sergeant Aaron Gumede of the provincial serial and electronic crime investigations unit, for a job well done.
Otola also praised the community for their assistance that helped ensure that the perpetrator "of the spate of heinous crimes" was behind bars where he belonged.