Pastor has been sent to jail over rape case at a local church.
The 42-year-old man, believed to be a pastor at a local church, has been sentenced to 15 years’ imprisonment by the Mahwelereng Regional Court for rape.
Thabiso Victor Mongatane was convicted and sentenced to 15 years’ imprisonment for the rape of a 25-year-old woman.
The sentence was handed down on Monday, 7 April.
This follows an incident which occurred at Masodi Village in September 2022.
The court heard that in March 2022, the victim’s mum fell sick, and the accused was recommended by a relative to help cure her illness.
The 25-year-old victim drove her mum to Masodi Village and found Mongatane who treated her mum’s sickness.
National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) in Limpopo said the accused raped the victim during the treatment session.
NPA spokeswoman Mashudu Malabi-Dzangi said: “On Sunday, 4 September 2022, the pastor prophesied to the victim and told her to come back after two days to get assistance about her obstacles. The victim drove back to the premises to get treatment from the pastor on Wednesday, 7 September 2022.
“On arrival, the victim was ordered to take her clothes off and cover her body for steaming. Mongatane further left the victim for a few minutes and returned afterwards. He then ordered her not to get dressed because he wanted to continue with the treatment, and she complied.
“The accused then took advantage of the victim and raped her during the treatment session.”
Deputy Chairman, Reverend Petrus Madumo at the South African Council of Churches (SACC) in Limpopo urged congregants to report any form of abuse by their pastors to the police.
“Church leaders are supposed to be protectors. They are not supposed to abuse their power. As the SACC, we stand against Gender-Based Violence and the abuse of women and children.
“We encourage congregants, who have been abused by their church leaders, to come forward and report the cases to the Police,” said Madumo.
