24 life terms sealed in months
MOKOENA DRIVEN TO STOP RAPISTS
PERSEVERANCE and dedication are what drove a junior police officer to secure 24 convictions with life terms in two months.
Constable John Mokoena, 35, told Sowetan that by working hard as police officers, the negative image some people have of the SA Police Service will be dealt with.
Mokoena’s thorough investigations led to Sharpeville serial rapist and kidnapper Moeketsi Monyake, 34, being sentenced to more than 330 years in jail last Thursday.
Monyake targeted girls aged between six and 10 in Boipatong, Sharpeville and Vereeniging, leaving some of them HIV-positive.
He received 12 life terms for rape, 35 years for kidnapping and a year for assaulting one of his victims in a spree between 2010 and January last year, when he was arrested.
In April, Mokoena also ensured that serial rapist John Mhlambi, 31, got 12 life terms for rape, 75 years for robbery with aggravating circumstances, 12 years for sexual assault, 12 years for forcing a child to witness the commission of a sexual offence, five years for attempted rape, another five years for pointing a firearm and six years for kidnapping. Mhlambi targeted Sebokeng boys aged between 10 and 15 between 2011 and 2014.
Mokoena, who is attached to the Gauteng Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences unit, joined the police in 2007 and began working for the unit in 2013.
He has secured 39 life terms and more than 400 years for various rapists.
“Beyond the lesson one learns from each investigation, I feel very humbled to know that I have left a positive mark on the lives of the victims,” said Mokoena.
“The comfort I have through this is overwhelming and brings a peaceful experience after changing the lives of victims by ensuring that their abusers have been removed from their midst.”
He said he assisted victims to face life again in a positive manner.
“That is fulfilling to me. This work is a calling and I am answering it by serving my people with pride. The incidents I deal with daily are very horrible [and] push me to work harder and ensure that the victims and their families receive justice.
“I am a father of three little girls and a boy. I would not want to see any of my children going through what victims go through.
“I want communities to trust that we work hard daily and spend extra hours ensuring that victims receive justice.
“Rape is disgusting and it is the worst form of violent crime. It breaks people’s souls, it is dehumanising and degrading to victims and their families.
“We plead with our communities not to remain silent, especially when they know of a victim of such crime or any other crime, and they must be whistleblowers because all criminals live among us and are well-known. Policing starts at home,” Mokoeana said.
“This work is a calling and I am serving my people