The Sunday News
Amanda Ncube, Sunday News Reporter
AN HIV positive man from Nkayi District who turned his neighbour’s daughter into a sex slave and infected her with HIV has been sentenced to 20 years in prison.
Sazini Mpofu (43) from Jetro Village took advantage of the trust bestowed on him by the 11-year-old minor’s grandparents and raped her. Mpofu pleaded guilty when he appeared before Bulawayo regional magistrate Mr Chrispen Mberewere last week facing two counts of rape. In sentencing him, Mr Mberewere said Mpofu’s acts did not show that he was a parent who was expected to protect children.
“You are an adult who sleeps with children. Children look up to adults to protect them and if those adults are not protecting them they will not know who to turn to for protection. From the facts we are told that you were reprimanded by the child’s grandmother in January. If you had behaved after being reprimanded we would not be here although it was wrong for the grandmother not to report the matter.”
Mr Mberewere said despite being reprimanded by the minor’s grandmother, Mpofu raped the minor again in June.
“You are sentenced to 20 years in prison of which four years are suspended for five years on condition you do not commit the same crime,” he said.
The State’s case as presented by prosecutor, Mr Busani Moyo was that in January, on an unknown date, Mpofu sneaked into the house where the girl was sleeping with her siblings. He raped the girl once. The following day Mpofu was called by the minor’s grandmother and warned never to rape the girl although he denied having raped the minor.
The court heard that on 2 June at around 8pm, the girl went to the nearby bush to relive herself, and Mpofu followed.
When she tried to run away, Mpofu grabbed her and pinned her to the ground before raping her.
The matter was reported to Nkayi District police leading to Mpofu’s arrest and the girl was taken to Nkayi District Hospital where she tested positive for HIV. According to the prosecutor Mpofu was also taken for a medical check-up and the medical records showed that he was indeed HIV positive. In his defence, Mpofu admitted to all the charges and said he was in love with the girl though he knew that she was under-age.
