A 45-year-old father has been sentenced by the Verulam Regional Court to life imprisonment for sexually assaulting his 12-year-old daughter in February 2017 in the Ndwedwe area of KwaZulu-Natal.

According to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) spokesperson in KwaZulu-Natal, Natasha Kara, the said father had insisted the victim who was staying with her grandmother, five years ago, should start living with him.

“From then on, he raped and sexually assaulted her on diverse occasions, sometimes using a firearm to threaten her into submission. The man also told her that the ancestors had chosen her to have sex with him and that they would kill her if she reported him,” said Kara.

The man was eventually apprehended after the daughter disclosed the unfortunate incident to her teacher.

The NPA said Regional Court Prosecutor Ishara Sewnarayan led the testimonies of six witnesses, including the victim.

Sewnarayan also submitted a Victim Impact Statement to the court.

“In the statement, facilitated by Court Preparation Officer Bongiwe Qwabe and compiled by the victim, the victim said that her experience has scarred her for life.

“She is constantly worried and anxious. She said that she had loved and worshipped her father but he had used her as an object of his lust. He took away her innocence,” said Kara.

Kara said the man was sentenced to life imprisonment for rape and five years’ imprisonment each for sexual assault and pointing of a firearm.

“The court deemed him unfit to possess a firearm and ruled that his name be entered into the National Register for Sex Offenders,” she added.