Taxi driver and guard sentenced to life imprisonment for rape

The Cape Town taxi driver and his guard were convicted of raping a teenager while on her way home from attending extra classes.

CAPE TOWN, April 23 (ANA) – A Cape Town taxi driver and his guard have been sentenced to life imprisonment at the Parow sexual offences court for the rape of a matric pupil in 2018.

Giovanni Florence and Jerome van Wyk were convicted of raping the teenager as she was on her way home from attending extra classes, provincial spokesman for the National Prosecuting Authority Eric Ntabazalila said in a statement released on Thursday.

In March 2018, the 17-year-old pupil attended extra classes at her school in the Kraaifontein area. She made travel arrangements with a teacher to drop her off at her home in Delft afterwards, but unfortunately their vehicle broke down on the way.

The teacher then assisted the teen into a taxi driven by Florence with van Wyk as the door operator.

Florence however did not stop to drop the girl off where he was supposed to, but instead drove to a secluded area where both men raped her, specialist sexual offences prosecutor Advocate Dercia Rabie told the court during trial. The two suspects, aged 27, were arrested days after the crime.

Rabie argued that the pupil was dependent on public transport to get her to school and back home and the accused acted in an opportunistic manner and took advantage of her.

“The fact that she successfully completed her matric was not to the benefit of the accused,” said Rabie.

“She showed strength irrespective of the fact that it was difficult to concentrate at school. She became afraid to travel to school and back home. She indicated in her victim impact statement that she was afraid of men because of the incident.

The prosecutor asked the court to not deviate from the prescribed minimum sentence and judge concurred, sentencing both men to life imprisonment.

– African News Agency (ANA), Editing by Stella Mapenzauswa