DNA match ends decade-long run as KZN man jailed for 35 years

Themba Mazibuko will serve a combined 35-year direct prison term after the Madadeni Regional Court found him guilty of a violent 2013 attack in Newcastle, KwaZulu-Natal, the court heard.

How the case came to court

The attack occurred on the evening of 12 April 2013, when a local woman stepped off a taxi and walked the remainder of her route home. According to the court record, Mazibuko, a stranger to the victim, ambushed her while armed with a knife, dragged her into a secluded area, raped her and robbed her of cash and a cellphone before fleeing.

The survivor reported the assault immediately to family and police, and received medical treatment and psychosocial counselling at the Madadeni Thuthuzela Care Centre (TCC), where staff collected forensic evidence including DNA samples.

Breakthrough: DNA link and arrest

Police were unable to link the crime to a suspect for ten years. In 2023 Mazibuko was arrested on an unrelated matter and his DNA profile was run through the national database, which produced a positive match to the 2013 crime scene, the prosecution said.

Evidence presented at trial

State Prosecutor Nkululeko Innocent Shandu relied on the DNA evidence together with testimony from the victim, the victim’s brother who received the initial report, and a medical doctor. Court Preparation Officer Nokukhanya Alice Cele submitted a victim impact statement setting out the survivor’s long-term emotional harm.

Sentence and court orders

Regional Court Magistrate M.C. de Klerk convicted Mazibuko of rape and robbery with aggravating circumstances. The magistrate sentenced him to 15 years for the rape and 20 years for the aggravated robbery, ordered to run consecutively for an effective 35-year term.

During sentencing the magistrate said,

“Violence of this nature against vulnerable members of our society destroys the very fabric of our communities, and the courts will not show leniency to those who hunt strangers in the dark.”

The court also declared Mazibuko unfit to possess a firearm and ordered that his name be added to the National Register for Sex Offenders.

Reaction from the NPA

National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson Natasha Ramkisson-Kara welcomed the sentence, saying,

“This sentence reflects the absolute gravity of these offences and affirms the justice system’s unwavering commitment to holding perpetrators accountable, no matter how much time has passed.”

A note on the victim

The sentence provides a long-delayed measure of closure for the survivor, who carried the effects of the attack for a decade, the court record notes.