News SA:
A sentence of life and 491 years’ direct imprisonment was handed down by Judge Mashudu Munzhelele in the Pretoria High Court to Doctor Nkurube today 21 May to serial rapist Doctor Nkurube Maruma. Maruma (34), who is from Mamelodi, was charged with a series of heinous sexual offences and violent crimes. He was charged for rape, house breaking and theft, among other charges. The court ordered that the sentences run concurrently with the life imprisonment term, and Maruma was declared unfit to possess a firearm.
Maruma charges included 19 counts of rape,15 counts of housebreaking with intent to commit robbery and robbery with aggravating circumstances and three counts of robbery with aggravating circumstances.
Between October 2017 and August 2022, Maruma was said to have used the same modus operandi when attacking his victims. He would break into victims’ homes during the early hours of the morning or at night, rob them, and raping the female victims threatening them with a knife or a gun.
Maruma committed his crimes in Limpopo and Pretoria between 2017 and 2018 while he was still residing in Limpopo. Upon moving to Pretoria, he continued with his crimes from 2019 until 2022, when he was arrested. During this period, Maruma broke into 15 households, his oldest rape victim was a 38-year-old woman, while his youngest rape victim was a15-year old girl. In 2017 Maruma was said to have raped the 38-year-old woman at her home in Limpopo when she had gone to the outside toilet to relieve herself. In a separate incident Maruma raped a 15-year-old girl in front of her mother after he broke into their home in the middle of the night.
One of the victims’ mothers was on record after the court delivered the guilty verdict, saying that they welcomed the conviction. “We are happy with today’s outcome. We can sleep peacefully, as the world is a better place without him,” the mother said. The parent congratulated the NPA on the matter, saying that justice was served.
Maruma was finally arrested on 14 August 2022, shortly after raping and robbing another victim of three cell phones and two laptops. The victim alerted a neighbour, and while searching the area, they stopped a police vehicle that was passing and reported the incident. Police later spotted and arrested Maruma.
Prosecutor, Advocate Vusimuzi Tshabalala, presented DNA evidence linking Maruma to the crimes and led compelling testimonies from the victims, after Maruma pleaded not guilty to the charges against him. The National Prosecuting Authority welcomed the sentence. The Acting Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Advocate Marika Jansen Van Vuuren, commended the prosecutor for his dedication and resilience in securing the conviction. “This landmark sentence sends a powerful message that crimes of gender-based violence will be met with the full might of the law. It reflects the NPA’s unwavering commitment to ensuring justice for victims, holding perpetrators accountable, and protecting the most vulnerable members of our society. Serial offenders like Maruma have no place in our communities, and we will continue to pursue justice without fear or favour,” Van Vuuren said. – @NewsSA_Online
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