Pastor who raped 11-year-old girl sentenced to life imprisonment

The regional court in Edenburg in the Free State has sentenced a 47-year-old pastor, Albert Tamasane, to life imprisonment after finding him guilty on two counts of rape and one count of sexual assault.

National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson Mojalefa Senokoatsane said on Monday the case arose from a series of incidents that began when the victim, then 11, and her mother moved in with the accused and his wife, who also served as their church pastor in 2019.

During this time, the victim’s mother died, leaving the child orphaned.

“After her mother’s death, the victim remained in the care of the accused and his wife, where the abuse subsequently took place. It was at this time that the accused began raping the 11-year-old victim from March 2019 when his wife was working night shifts.”

These rape incidents continued until November 2019 when the victim informed the wife of the accused what was happening.

“The matter was reported to the police and the accused was arrested and charged with five counts of rape.”

Prosecutor Leon Ehlers argued that the accused demonstrated no remorse for his actions.

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