Serial predator Lonwabo Solontsi this week re-traumatised some of his victims by smirking at them and gesturing to them in court that he could see them, one of the women indicated in court yesterday.
Several of the women gave evidence yesterday about how the rapist destroyed their intimate relationships with partners, caused unwanted pregnancies, night terrors, depression, self-hatred, suicidal thoughts, terrifying flashbacks and a terrible fear of men.
Solontsi this week pleaded guilty and was convicted of 39 rape charges and a further 26 charges, including robbery with aggravating circumstances, and housebreaking with intent to rob and rape.
One young woman, who was raped aged just 19 on the Alice campus of the University of Fort Hare, said she had repeatedly relived her ordeal at Solontsi’s hands in 2013. She said his trial had set her back particularly after he yesterday brazenly smiled at his victims in court and gestured to them that he could see them.
She demonstrated how he pointed to his eyes with two fingers and then pointed at all of them indicating he could “see them”.
“Now I see him again I feel powerless.” Dressed in a brown shirt, beige pants and a tweed jacket, Solontsi listened intently to his victims’ accounts of their horror rapes, taking frantic notes.
The women are all testifying in aggravation of sentence. The state has indicated it will be asking for life sentences on at least a dozen of the charges.
One 45-year-old woman raped by Solontsi in a derelict house in Willowvale some six years ago, says she still lives in fear. It had ruined her relationship with her husband who she said blames her for the rape.
Wiping her eyes, she said she relives the rape whenever her husband wants to be intimate with her.
“When he gets intoxicated, he swears at me and reminds me what happened to me. He says he does not love me anymore because I was raped.” Another young UFH student who was twice raped by Solontsi – who was himself a student at Fort Hare at the time – testified that she had been impregnated by the serial rapist.
She aborted the baby as she said she could “never love his child”.
Sobbing, she said her boyfriend blamed her for the rape and they had split up as a result. She had become introverted and distrustful of people, particularly men. She often relived the rape. When Solontsi’s Legal Aid lawyer Helen McCallum indicated she had no questions for the witnesses, Solontsi twice interrupted her. He asked her to ask the former UFH student why she thought her boyfriend blamed her for the rape.
“I don’t know,” was the reply. He smiled at her answer.
Senior state Advocate Nickie Turner is prosecuting. Judge Thami Beshe is presiding. The matter was postponed to next year.
Serial rapist taunts his victims: Brazen Solontsi drives fear in to women in court
Several of the women gave evidence yesterday about how the rapist destroyed their intimate relationships with partners, caused unwanted pregnancies, night terrors, depression, self-hatred, suicidal thoughts, terrifying flashbacks and a terrible fear of men.
Solontsi this week pleaded guilty and was convicted of 39 rape charges and a further 26 charges, including robbery with aggravating circumstances, and housebreaking with intent to rob and rape.
One young woman, who was raped aged just 19 on the Alice campus of the University of Fort Hare, said she had repeatedly relived her ordeal at Solontsi’s hands in 2013. She said his trial had set her back particularly after he yesterday brazenly smiled at his victims in court and gestured to them that he could see them.
She demonstrated how he pointed to his eyes with two fingers and then pointed at all of them indicating he could “see them”.
“Now I see him again I feel powerless.” Dressed in a brown shirt, beige pants and a tweed jacket, Solontsi listened intently to his victims’ accounts of their horror rapes, taking frantic notes.
The women are all testifying in aggravation of sentence. The state has indicated it will be asking for life sentences on at least a dozen of the charges.
One 45-year-old woman raped by Solontsi in a derelict house in Willowvale some six years ago, says she still lives in fear. It had ruined her relationship with her husband who she said blames her for the rape.
Wiping her eyes, she said she relives the rape whenever her husband wants to be intimate with her.
“When he gets intoxicated, he swears at me and reminds me what happened to me. He says he does not love me anymore because I was raped.” Another young UFH student who was twice raped by Solontsi – who was himself a student at Fort Hare at the time – testified that she had been impregnated by the serial rapist.
She aborted the baby as she said she could “never love his child”.
Sobbing, she said her boyfriend blamed her for the rape and they had split up as a result. She had become introverted and distrustful of people, particularly men. She often relived the rape. When Solontsi’s Legal Aid lawyer Helen McCallum indicated she had no questions for the witnesses, Solontsi twice interrupted her. He asked her to ask the former UFH student why she thought her boyfriend blamed her for the rape.
“I don’t know,” was the reply. He smiled at her answer.
Senior state Advocate Nickie Turner is prosecuting. Judge Thami Beshe is presiding. The matter was postponed to next year.
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