Attempted rape convict jailed for 3 years

LÃœDERITZ resident Gideon Kalola (42), found guilty of attempted rape of a seven-year-old girl, was sentenced to three years’ imprisonment in the Keetmanshoop Regional Court.

Divisional Magistrate Sunsley Zisengwe sentenced Kalola to six years’ imprisonment of which three years were suspended for five years on condition that Kalola is not again convicted of rape or attempted rape during that period. ‘Child sexual molestation is an evil that must be rooted out in society. Abuse of children literally amounts to destroying the future, and that cannot be tolerated,’ said Zisengwe. Initially, Kalola was charged with rape, to which he pleaded not guilty. However, at the conclusion of his trial the court found that the State could not prove that sexual penetration had occurred and convicted Kalola on a charge of attempted rape. It was alleged that Kalola had lured the girl into his house and raped her there.The court was also told that Kalola had raised the girl as his own child because of a relationship he had with her aunt. The incident happened at Lüderitz’s Area Seven township on September 24 2005, just a few months after the girl’s aunt had ended her relationship with Kalola.Kalola, who has six children, pleaded for a suspended sentence, claiming he was the only breadwinner of his family. Calling for a sentence of nine years’ imprisonment, State Prosecutor Veiko Alexander remarked that Kalola had abused the trust the girl had in him as father figure. ‘Do not impose sentences amounting to lip-service for these crimes. This could lead to affected parents taking the law into their own hands,’ Alexander warned.

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