Komani court hands serial rapist four life terms after DNA links

A Komani Regional Court has sentenced a 41-year-old Mlungisi man, Khaya Masiba, to four life terms of direct imprisonment after DNA testing linked him to a series of rapes committed between June 2013 and October 2015.

Convictions followed DNA evidence and re-arrest

Eastern Cape police spokesperson Captain Yolisa Mgolodela said the crimes dated from June 2013 to October 2015 and that DNA results issued in July 2019 linked Masiba to all four cases. Masiba was traced and re-arrested in July 2019 and remained in custody until his sentence by the Komani Regional Court on 20 August 2026.

Details of the incidents

Mgolodela described the four separate incidents presented in court. In the first matter, a now 54-year-old woman was returning from a tavern when she was approached by her ex-boyfriend, who grabbed and dragged her to his shack where he assaulted, stabbed and raped her. The woman lodged a rape complaint with Mlungisi police; the case was struck off the roll pending DNA results.

In a March 2014 incident, a now 41-year-old woman who had left a vehicle after a quarrel was accosted near Mlungisi cemetery by two men who dragged her to the cemetery and took turns in raping her. The men later took her to a shack in Mlungisi, where one pleaded for forgiveness. The victim laid a charge at Mlungisi Police Station and investigations followed.

In August 2015, a now 41-year-old woman walking to Khayelitsha Location was confronted on Bulawayo Street by four men. Slightly intoxicated, she fled into a nearby yard but was pursued, caught, dragged into the street, strangled, undressed and raped. A rape case was opened at Mlungisi Police Station.

In October 2015, a now 56-year-old woman woke in her shack to find someone fondling her and attempting to remove her clothes. When she resisted she was badly assaulted and raped; the attacker escaped through a window and another rape case was opened with Mlungisi SAPS.

Investigation and sentencing

The cases were investigated by Sergeant Yongama Hillary Mkabile from the Komani Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences (FCS) Unit. Mkabile pursued the investigations until DNA results linked Masiba to the four matters in July 2019, leading to his re-arrest and eventual conviction.

Masiba was also declared unfit to possess a firearm as part of the court’s orders.

Official response

The District Commissioner, Major-General Rudolph Adolph, welcomed the sentence. Adolph praised Sergeant Mkabile for securing what he described as retributive justice, noting it followed another life-imprisonment sentence obtained by the unit at Cacadu Regional Court on 24 July for a different rape case.

Key facts

• Defendant: Khaya Masiba, 41, of Mlungisi.
• Sentence: Four life terms of direct imprisonment by Komani Regional Court on 20 August 2026.
• Offences: Series of rapes occurring between June 2013 and October 2015.
• Evidence: DNA results issued in July 2019 linking Masiba to all four cases.
• Investigating officer: Sergeant Yongama Hillary Mkabile, Komani FCS Unit.