Multiple sentences for rapist

A serial rapist‚ who preyed on small-in-stature teenagers in the Pinetown and Ntuzuma areas of Durban between 2010 and 2016‚ was sentenced to five life sentences and a further 68 years in prison.

While the sentences will run concurrently‚ their collective weight will be considered if and when Mthobisi Mthoba Mnyandu is ever considered for parole after serving 25 years behind bars.

“He is a menace to society and he must be removed for a long period of time‚” Durban High Court judge Mokgere Masipa said on Monday.

Mnyandu‚ who is now in his early 30s‚ was convicted by Masipa earlier in the year on eight counts of kidnapping‚ seven counts of rape and one of robbery.

Some of his victims had testified how they had been grabbed by Mnyandu in public places but their screams for help from bystanders had fallen on deaf ears as he claimed they were his girlfriends.

Mnyandu pleaded not guilty to all the charges. He said the sex was by consent after he “proposed love” to the girls.

Later‚ under cross-examination by state advocate Krishan Shah‚ he said “the devil made me do it”.

He conceded that he was “overcome by lust”, but continued to deny that he had raped his victims. The only thing he did wrong was he “moved quickly with them”, he said.

Passing sentence‚ Masipa highlighted the victim impact statements handed in to the court in which the young women told of how their lives had changed after they were raped.

They spoke of failing at school‚ being scarred for life‚ feeling ashamed‚ being filled with hatred‚ particularly of men‚ having flashbacks and being afraid to walk alone.

“The manner in which these crimes were committed is indicative of planning and calculation – he selected specific victims‚ young girls between the ages of 14 and 16 who were mostly virgins,” Masipa said.

“They were small-built and could not defend themselves.

“He appears to be a person who enjoys seeing his victims in pain and helpless.”

Masipa noted that because Mnyandu had denied the rapes, the women had been forced to testify in detail to remove any doubt.

“He was never moved by this. Instead he smiled.”

She said that when he testified in mitigation of sentence‚ Mnyandu showed no remorse and‚ in fact‚ had said that if he had not been arrested he would probably have carried on kidnapping and raping.

She noted that while minimum sentences had been in place for almost two decades‚ statistics showed there had been an increase in these crimes.