{"id":390401,"date":"2026-08-22T13:09:19","date_gmt":"2026-08-22T13:09:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/390401\/"},"modified":"2026-08-22T13:09:19","modified_gmt":"2026-08-22T13:09:19","slug":"former-city-of-tshwane-worker-gets-life-for-locking-a-woman-inside-toilet-then-raping-her","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/390401\/","title":{"rendered":"Former City of Tshwane worker gets life for locking a woman inside toilet, then raping her"},"content":{"rendered":"

Former City of Tshwane general worker Matome Seloesa, 42, has been sentenced to life imprisonment for raping a 39-year-old woman who stopped to use a municipal toilet in May 2023, where he locked her inside, raped<\/a> her and even threatened to kill her.<\/p>\n

The man was previously convicted of raping the woman.<\/p>\n

NPA Regional Spokesperson for Pretoria, Lumka Mahanjana, said the incident occurred in the morning of May 27, 2023, when the victim was on her way to Sunnyside to visit a friend.<\/p>\n

The woman stopped at a City of Tshwane municipal building and requested permission to use the toilet.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cAs she made her way to the facility, Seloesa followed her, locked her inside the toilet, and repeatedly raped and assaulted her while threatening to kill her.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cAs the assault, Seloesa instructed the victim to remain in the toilet while he went to purchase food.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOnce he had left, the victim managed to escape from the building and approached a police vehicle stationed nearby.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mahanjana said the woman immediately reported the incident.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile she was speaking to the police, Seloesa approached and falsely claimed that the victim was his girlfriend.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen the victim realised that her complaint was not being taken seriously, she ran to a nearby residence and informed the occupants about what had transpired.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Mahanjana said the occupants assisted her in contacting other police officers, leading to Seloesa’s arrest at his workplace later that day.<\/p>\n

During the trial, Seloesa pleaded not guilty and claimed that the complainant was both his girlfriend and a sex worker.\u00a0<\/p>\n

However, State Prosecutor Sfiso Hlongwane presented compelling evidence, including the victim’s testimony, which proved the accused’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Mahanjana said during sentencing proceedings, Seloesa, through his legal representative, requested the court to deviate from imposing the prescribed minimum sentence of life imprisonment.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cHe submitted that he was a first-time offender, had three minor children who were dependent on him, and that the offence should not be viewed as serious.\u201d<\/p>\n

However, Hlongwane opposed these submissions, arguing that Seloesa had demonstrated no remorse for his actions.\u00a0<\/p>\n

He pointed out that the accused continued to insist that the victim was his girlfriend despite not knowing her.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cHlongwane further submitted that rape is a heinous and serious offence<\/a> in which perpetrators exert power and control over victims through violence and intimidation.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mahanjana said Hlongwane further argued that South Africa continues to face a severe challenge regarding gender-based violence and that offenders such as Seloesa contribute to the perpetuation of these crimes.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cHlongwane also highlighted that the accused deliberately attempted to mislead the police while the victim was trying to report the offence.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cAs part of the sentencing proceedings, Hlongwane presented a Victim Impact Statement facilitated by Court Preparation Officer Joyce Makwela.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to Mahanjana, in the statement, the victim described how she had to terminate a pregnancy that resulted from the rape and how she continues to suffer medical complications that have had significant financial implications.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cShe also explained that the incident negatively affected her engagement and that she continues to experience psychological trauma.\u201d<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, in handing down the sentence, the court presiding officer stated that Seloesa had shown no remorse and had exploited a vulnerable woman who had simply sought to use a public restroom.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThe court further found that Seloesa was not the primary caregiver of his children, who reside with their respective mothers,\u201d Mahanjana said.<\/p>\n

She said the magistrate noted that the accused showed no mercy towards the victim, repeatedly threatening to kill her while subjecting her to a prolonged and violent assault.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThe court further emphasised its duty to ensure that women are able to move freely and safely within society and that sentences must send a clear message that violence against women will not be tolerated.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHaving found no substantial and compelling circumstances justifying a lesser sentence, the court imposed the prescribed sentence of life imprisonment.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mahanjana said the NPA welcomed the sentence and believes it sends a strong message that sexual offences and all forms of gender-based violence will be met with the full force of the law.\u00a0<\/p>\n

She said the sentence demonstrates the NPA’s unwavering commitment to combating gender-based violence (GBV) and ensuring that perpetrators of sexual offences are held accountable for their crimes.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe authority remains committed to supporting victims in their pursuit of justice and ensuring that offenders are held accountable for their actions.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThis sentence serves as a reminder that no one is above the law and that the criminal justice system will continue to prioritise the protection of women and vulnerable members of society,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n

[email\u00a0protected]<\/a><\/p>\n

IOL News<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Former City of Tshwane general worker Matome Seloesa, 42, has been sentenced to life imprisonment for raping a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":378897,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[52],"tags":[33191,4853,186478,23544,186476,5800,111510,589,186477,109639,131,106061,16597],"class_list":["post-390401","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-south-africa","tag-city-of-tshwane","tag-gbv","tag-joyce-makwela","tag-lumka-mahanjana","tag-matome-seloesa","tag-npa","tag-npa-regional-spokesperson","tag-pretoria","tag-sfiso-hlongwane","tag-simon-majadiboduiol-co-za","tag-south-africa","tag-sunnyside","tag-victim-impact-statement"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@africa\/117139325815998510","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/390401","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=390401"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/390401\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/378897"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=390401"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=390401"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=390401"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}