Serial rapist nabbed in Malukazi

DURBAN – The province of KwaZulu-Natal finds itself on the wrong side wrong of the numbers when it comes to sexual related offences. Even though lengthy sentences are imposed on a regular basis on those found guilty of such crimes, seemingly these do not do much deterring to would-be offenders who still believe that they can get away with committing such crimes. Hence various strategies have been employed in trying to turn the tide against this scourge. Some of these strategies involved intensive community engagement initiatives as well as awareness campaigns where plans of waging a war against these crimes were outlined. These frequent engagements also served to bolster a strong relationship between the police and community which is deemed as a catalyst in winning the war against these crimes. Parallel to these endeavours the South African Police Service in KwaZulu-Natal Natal have doubled their efforts in bringing to book those who are suspected to be perpetrators of these crimes.

This was evident when on Sunday, 30 January 2022, detectives from the Inanda Family Violence Child Protection and Sexual Offences Unit arrested a 50-year-old suspect at Malukazi for rape. The first reported case dates back to 2008 where it is alleged that the suspect targeted unsuspecting victims in the Durban Central Business District. In a calm and convincing manner he would ask them to accompany him to Isipingo either because he did not know the area very well or would offer some assistance to the victim who was in distress and in doing so he would lure them to Isipingo as well. They would board a taxi and once at Isipingo, he would tell them that he needed to fetch his car from a particular house. They would then walk a distance of about 3 kilometres and the final destination will be in the bushy area on Wattle Place where he would strangle, rape and rob the victims of their valuables.

Cases with a similar modus operandi kept on piling up until it became apparent that a serial rapist was in operation. Concerted effort was put in trying to arrest the perpetrator but he was proving to be very slippery when sought by the police. The last reported case which brought the number of cases reported to 22 occurred on 20 August 2021 where the victim alleges that she was also lured to Isipingo where she was also strangled and subsequently lost consciousness. When she woke up she was naked, she sought help from the people on the street and reported the matter at Isipingo Police Station. After medical examinations were conducted it was discovered that she had been raped.

The detectives knuckled down and applied different strategies in trying to find the suspect. This was proving difficult because there was no proper description of the suspect from the victims and he also used different names according to his victims. Painstaking police investigation coupled with calculated undercover work finally led detectives to a house at Malukazi where the suspect was found. With positive identifications from the two of the victims, he was subsequently arrested. The suspect will be charged and will appear at the Durban Magistrates Court on Tuesday, 1 February 2022. We are appealing to other victims who may have fell prey to this suspect to come forward and report the matter at the nearest police station.

Source: South African Police Service