NEWS IN BRIEF

KIMBERLEY A city family has warned residents to be cautious at the West End Cemetery after they were attacked and robbed on Sunday.

According to the family members, they were robbed of cash and their cellphones by two men armed with knives at around 5pm.

They said they feared for their lives after the men threatened to kill them.

According to the family, they usually visit the cemetery on Sundays to check on the graves of their loved ones.

They said they only noticed another family a distance away from them, and not the two attackers, who seemed to be in their twenties.

The family said they have opened a case with the police but urged residents to be cautious at the cemetery.

COLESBERG Sentences have been handed down by the Colesberg Regional Court to two men for two separate incidents of rape.

In the one case, 34-year-old Denis Thembakani Cekisa was sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment for raping a 42-year-old woman in Kuyasa in Colesberg.

Police spokesperson Lieutenant-colonel Dimakatso Mooi said the incident occurred in February 2015.

“The incident occurred when the victim was walking home from a local tavern. The accused accosted the woman on the street and raped her. He was arrested but released on bail. While on bail, the accused raped another 53-year-old woman in October 2017. In this incident he attacked the victim at her house and raped her. He was re-arrested. He was sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment for each of the rape cases,” said Mooi.

The sentences will run concurrently.

In another case, a 35-year-old man, Jolin Petersen, was sentenced to eight years’ imprisonment for raping a mentally-ill woman.

Mooi said the woman was raped at her home. “Peterson raped the woman in July 2015 when he offered to look after the victim.”

Mooi said the police management in the Northern Cape has welcomed both sentences and applauded the Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences unit in the Pixley ka Seme Cluster for their tireless effort and commitment in ensuring justice is served.

COLESBERG A 39-year-old man, John Mcanda, was sentenced to six years’ imprisonment by the Colesberg Regional Court for assaulting four minors, aged between 13 and 17 years.

Police spokesperson Lieutenant-colonel Dimakatso Mooi said that Mcanda had accused the children of stealing his dagga and chips.

“He took the children to his house, where he tied their hands and assaulted them with a sjambok. Mcanda was found guilty on a charge of assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm. The sentence was secured through a meticulous investigation conducted by Constable Nelson William of the De Aar Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences unit. The police will not tolerate the abuse of children,” said Mooi. KIMBERLEY Two 29-year-old men were