In Pretoria, a court has sentenced serial rapist Nkosinathi Emmanuel Phakathi (40) to 42 life terms and 791 years in prison. He was found guilty of 94 rapes and other crimes. If you are reading from Phoenix Browser make sure you click on Read Original on the top to read the full and original version of the Article.
Phakathi’s crimes happened between 2012 and 2021. His victims were mostly school children, the youngest just 9 years old. He would attack them while they were walking to or from school, or even in their homes. He pretended to be an electrician to enter homes and then raped his victims. In some cases, he made people watch as he raped others.
Phakathi pleaded guilty to 148 charges because of the strong evidence against him, not because he felt sorry for his crimes. DNA evidence helped link him to many of the attacks.
Phakathi asked the court for a lighter sentence, saying he had lost a leg and was no longer a danger. But the court disagreed. Advocate Salome Scheepers, who was the prosecutor, argued that Phakathi’s crimes were extremely serious. She said that he showed no real regret and had caused deep harm to his victims.
One of his victims shared how the attack had ruined her ability to take part in important cultural ceremonies, causing her long-lasting pain.
The judge, Lesego Makolomakwe, said that Phakathi showed no remorse and was beyond rehabilitation. The court gave him the maximum punishment to protect society from further harm. Phakathi’s name will also be added to the National Register for Sexual Offenders.
The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) praised the sentence, saying it sends a strong message that sexual crimes will be dealt with seriously in South Africa.
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