Man rapes visually impaired woman in Zimbabwe

A 32-year-old man from Filabusi has been sentenced to 16 years in prison for raping a visually impaired woman.

The incident occurred on March 28, 2024, when the victim, who lives alone, went to bed without locking her door. The assailant broke into her house, attacked her, and raped her.

The victim's nephew, alerted by her calls for help, involved the neighborhood watch committee. They tracked the assailant's footprints to his residence, leading to his arrest.

In a statement on X, the National Prosecuting Authority of Zimbabwe (NPAZ) said: "On the 28th of March 2024 at around 2000 hours the complainant who is visually impaired and lives alone, retired to bed and forgot to lock the door. The complainant was woken up by the sound of the creaking door as the accused person got in.

"As she was enquiring who it was, the accused person jumped into the bed and squeezed her neck before raping her. He fled soon after committing the offence. The complainant shouted for help and her nephew who lives nearby came to help. He alerted the members of the neighbourhood watch committee who tracked the footprints which led to the accused person's place of residence and they recovered his shoes which matched the set of footprints. The accused person was arrested."