The Gqeberha high court on Monday sentenced a taxi driver to seven life terms for rapes he committed between 2013 and 2019.
Anele Skunyana, 35, was already serving a 14-year sentence for a 2019 rape, and was linked through DNA to seven other rape cases committed during that period. These rapes were committed in New Brighton, Zwide, Despatch and KwaMagxaki.
Among those he raped was an eight-year-old girl in December 2018.
“The accused pleaded guilty and was convicted on all the charges. In total he was sentenced to seven life terms for rape and received five years on each of the six kidnapping charges. The sentences will run concurrently,” police spokesperson Col Priscilla Naidu said.
Eastern Cape police commissioner Lt-Gen Nomthetheleli Mene welcomed the sentence and congratulated the investigating officer D/Sgt Jerome Jacobs from the Motherwell family violence, child protection and sexual offences unit for bringing Skunyana to justice.
“The sentencing of Anele Skunyana marks a significant victory in the ongoing fight against gender based violence (GBV). GBV remains one of the most pervasive and persistent challenges facing our society today. This sentencing serves as a strong message that such atrocious acts of violence, particularly those targeting women, will not be tolerated in society,” Mene said.
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