Director of Public Prosecutions, Pretoria v Mfanimpela Ntokozo Zulu

The respondent was the stepfather of the complainant, a minor. Between November 2011 and February 2015, when the complainant was aged 12 to 15 years, he repeatedly raped her at their home when no one else was present. He abused his position of trust, manipulated her into silence, and caused multiple pregnancies, all of which were terminated at his insistence. He also assaulted the complainant and threatened one of her male school friends, leading to two counts of common assault. The regional court convicted him of three counts of rape under s 51(1) of the Criminal Law Amendment Act and imposed life imprisonment on each rape count, to run concurrently. On appeal, the High Court reduced the sentences to 20 years’ imprisonment. The Director of Public Prosecutions appealed to the Supreme Court of Appeal against the reduction of sentence.

The appeal by the Director of Public Prosecutions was upheld. The High Court’s order reducing the sentences was set aside, and the life sentences imposed by the Ermelo Regional Court on the three rape counts were reinstated, to run concurrently.

The case reaffirms the limited scope of appellate interference in sentencing and clarifies that a misapplication of the proportionality test under the minimum sentencing regime constitutes a question of law for purposes of s 311 of the Criminal Procedure Act. It underscores that courts may not reduce prescribed minimum sentences in the absence of substantial and compelling circumstances and that the fact that worse crimes are imaginable does not preclude the imposition of life imprisonment.