Church woman rapist jailed

A 21-YEAR-OLD man has been jailed for 12 years for raping his 58-year-old neighbour while she was on her way from a church service at night.

Butholenkosi Sibanda of Lumene Village pleaded not guilty to rape charges when he appeared before Gwanda regional magistrate, Mr Mark Dzira but was convicted due to overwhelming evidence against him.

Sibanda was sentenced to 12 years imprisonment and two years were suspended on condition that he does not commit a similar offence within the next five years.

Prosecuting, Mr Mncedisi Dube said Sibanda, who works as a herdsman, raped the woman on May 1 at around 10PM.

"On 1 May around 10PM, the complainant was walking alone home from a church service. She passed a group of local boys who were standing by the roadside and among them she noticed Sibanda who was wearing a black track suit with white stripes on the sides," said Mr Dube.

"Sibanda left his peers and followed the woman and he pushed her to the ground. He covered her mouth with his hand and raped her once before fleeing the scene."

He said on the following morning the woman reported the matter to a neighbourhood watch committee member.  Mr Dube said the committee member traced Sibanda's shoe prints from the crime scene to his place of residence resulting in his arrest.

Sibanda denied having raped the woman saying he was asleep at home when the incident occurred.

He said the woman passed him while he was standing by the roadside and from there he proceeded home.

Sibanda said the shoe prints that were alleged to be his were not.

In her statement in court, the woman said she did not know Sibanda before the incident but she managed to identify him by the clothes that he was wearing.