Pretoria – The High Court in Middelburg has convicted and sentenced 31-year-old Vusi Donald Bhuda to four life terms and 15 years imprisonment for murder and three counts of rape.
National Prosecuting Authority’s spokesperson in Mpumalanga, Monica Nyuswa said the incidents happened in the district of KwaMhlanga.
“Bhuda was sentenced after he pleaded guilty to the murder of Nonhlanhla Maseko, and three counts of rape he committed in the District of KwaMhlanga between May to June 2020,” said Nyuswa.
“The accused met two of his victims on Facebook and raped them more than once. His modus operandi was to invite them to his place of residence under the pretext that there would be a ceremony and wanted to introduce them as his girlfriends to his family.”
In his plea, given through his lawyer, Bhuda told the court that on May 4, 2020, Maseko was his girlfriend who came to his place of residence and an altercation started after she received a call from a male friend.
Bhuda said this angered him and he assaulted her. He also strangled her with a rope he found in his room.
He also raped her.
“After realising that (she) was no longer breathing, he took her lifeless body to the bridge on the R573 Road, where it was later discovered. He then took her belongings like cellphones, bank cards, shoes, and her T-shirt,” said Nyuswa.
“On June 21, 2020, the accused invited another female victim on Facebook. He deceived her and told her that there was a ceremony at his place of residence. When the (woman) came, he took her to his room.”
While they were sitting on his bed and he threatened her with a toy gun and ordered her to undress.
He subsequently raped her more than once.
Using the same modus operandi, Bhuda invited another woman on June 23, 2020, and raped her.
In aggravation of the sentence, advocate Gertrude Nkosi addressed the court about the scourge of gender-based violence in South Africa.
She said violence against women and children “is a shameful human rights violation which knows no boundaries of geography, wealth, or culture”.
A post-mortem report was presented to the court, which revealed that Maseko died due to strangulation.
Victim impact statements compiled by the surviving victims and facilitated by the court preparation officer, Given Mampye, were also handed in.
The rape victims told the court that the incidents had left them traumatised and heartbroken.
During sentencing, Judge Thando Mankge remarked that the accused was a first-time offender, but his crimes had tormented several people.
She sentenced Bhuda to life imprisonment on each count of rape. She also sentenced Bhuda with another life imprisonment for the murder of Maseko, and another 15 years for robbery with aggravating circumstances.
The NPA in Mpumalanga has welcomed the sentence, adding that it hopes the jail terms will send a stern warning “that the criminal justice system will deal harshly with the perpetrators of gender-based violence”.
“We further encourage Facebook users, to always be vigilant of the people they communicate with, and more so when they decide to meet with them,” said advocate Nkebe Kanyane, director of the public prosecutions in Mpumalanga.
IOL