By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Mozambican national Pethe Simiao has been sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder and rape of six-year-old Amantle Samane.
Simiao, 25, pleaded guilty to four charges of kidnapping, rape, murder and contravention of the Immigration Act.
The High Court of South Africa, Gauteng Local Division in Johannesburg, convicted him on all counts.
Amantle was tragically raped and murdered just a month before her Grade R graduation and the day before her graduation photo session.
Judge William Karam handed Simiao two life terms during sentencing on Monday.
He was handed an additional two years for kidnapping and another two years for illegally residing in the country.
“The court wishes to address that the accused was in the republic unlawfully when he committed counts 1 and 2.The victim’s mother testified to having developed hatred towards foreigners,” said Karam.
Amantle’s mother, Ntombizodwa Samane, said she was happy with Simiao’s sentencing, adding that it was a signal of justice being served.
She believes the two life sentences and an additional four years will send a strong message to perpetrators of sexual assault against children.
NPA spokesperson, Phindi Mjonondwane says Simiao, did not initially intend to plead guilty.
However, he changed his mind when he realised there was overwhelming evidence against him.
Mjonondwane added such sentences are proof of the NPA’s fight against violence meted out to vulnerable groups.
“We continue to see courts handing hefty sentences, but such gruesome acts continue to happen; but as the Prosecuting Authority, we can never tire.”
The latest police statistics showed notable drops in major violent crimes when comparing January-March 2025 with the same quarter in 2024 (Chart 2). Murder levels decreased by 12.4% to 5 727 murders, or an average of 64 per day.
Kidnappings were the most significant exception to the downward trend for violent crime, rising by 6.8% to reach 4 571 cases. This suggests that Kidnapping is increasingly being adopted as a low-risk, high-reward offence.
Exposure to violence in childhood increases the chance of further victimisation later in life, and child victims could become adult perpetrators – sustaining inter-generational cycles of interpersonal violence. Experiencing violence in childhood is also associated with unemployment, dependency on grants, alcohol dependence and poor mental health.
To tackle this problem, multi-sectoral prevention strategies are needed. A pilot child death review system that has been initiated in South Africa to identify and describe the patterns and causes of child death could assist in developing such strategies.