A 45-year-old man convicted of defiling his 13-year-old daughter three years ago was on Tuesday sentenced to 20 years imprisonment by the Maun Magistrate.
The HIV positive man is said to have repeatedly sexually assaulted his daughter on many occasions until the 20th October, 2019 when he was caught.
Arriving in school limping and walking with great discomfort, the school’s Safety and Health Care official noticed that there could be something wrong with the child and, upon a gentle interrogation, her father’s criminal activities were exposed.
It is said that although the girl’s mother had witnessed some of the incidents, she could not report or tell anyone about the ordeal because the man had threatened to kill them if she spoke out.
Passing the sentence, magistrate Thebeetsile Mulalo noted that the fact that the perpetrator is the biological father of the victim aggravates the matter.
“He is the parent, naturally he is expected to protect the child. After the incident, the child was removed from her family and was kept in safe houses only to be kept safe from her own father,” said the Magistrate.
Infections
According to Mulalo, despite government efforts to combat HIV, offences of a sexual nature are now prevalent and it puts the victims of sexual offences at the risk of contracting sexually transmitted infections, including HIV.
“During the proceedings, it was not clear as to whether a condom was used,” said Mulalo, adding that the father-of-five tested positive for HIV.
It turned out that his medical records confirmed that he was enrolled for AntiRetroviral treatment in 2010 and was re-initiated into the programme four months ago.
“The accused person’s HIV status at the time of the commission of the offence and the fact that he knew about it also aggravates the offence” added Mulalo.
The victim testified that on the fateful day, while sleeping, her father came to the house and covered her mouth, switched on the radio and switched off the lights, undressed her and raped her.
She also testified that the following morning, after the ordeal, her brother tripped her and raped her on their way to school, copying his father’s immoral acts.
The father-of-five has, however, maintained his innocence and argued that he could never sexually violate his own daughter as her mother is always there to satisfy his sexual needs.
The 20-year sentence will take into account the 88 days he has already spent in prison pending the outcome of the case.
