A serial rapist has been sentenced. Charles O’Rear, Getty Images
- A serial rapist was handed eight life sentences.
- The accused committed the rapes between April 2017 and December 2018.
- Six of his victims were minors.
- A serial rapist, convicted of raping 15 women and children in less than two years, has been handed eight life sentences by the Gauteng High Court in Pretoria.
Tshitsho Mothesele, 39, whose crime spree was committed in the North West and Gauteng, appeared in court for sentencing on Thursday.
Mothesele, who pleaded not guilty to all charges, was convicted of raping nine adult women and six minors from April 2017 to December 2018. His victims were aged between 11 and 35.
He was also convicted on nine counts of robbery with aggravating circumstances and kidnapping.
Mothesele’s modus operandi consisted of accosting his victims, threatening them with a knife, before raping and robbing them.
In some instances, he used the victim’s clothing to strangle them.
In another incident, he raped a victim who had been walking home from a nearby playground.
Sentencing
During sentencing, the court found the accused had not proved any compelling or substantial circumstances in mitigation of sentence.
The court also accepted a profile report on Mothesele, which stated that he was not remorseful and was a very poor candidate for rehabilitation.
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“[Mothesele] will most likely remain a threat to society for as long as he is alive,” the report read.
The report further found that a 2013 conviction for assault with the intention to do grievous bodily harm did not deter Mothesele from committing more violent crimes.
Mothesele was handed eight life sentences and a further 195 years behind bars. All the sentences will run concurrently with the life sentences imposed.
Following sentencing, a seemingly unfazed Mothesele was taken to the holding cells, where he will be transported back to prison to start serving his sentence.