The police confirmed that Mthokozisi Cyril Mdlalose, a 37-year-old self-proclaimed prophet and traditional healer, has been sentenced to five life terms plus an additional 30 years for the rape of three young women.
KZN police spokesperson, Colonel Robert Netshiunda, said Mdlalose used his position of trust to lure his victims to his home under false pretences, where he would then rape them.
“Mdlalose’s raping spree started in October 2020 when he masqueraded as a prophet and gave an 18-year-old girl a false prophesy that she was bewitched and that her days on earth were numbered.
“He then instructed the victim to come to his eMadresini home so that he could reverse the curse.
“The victim told her mother who believed the ‘prophet’ and allowed her to go and see him.
“The fake prophet told the girl to lie on her back and applied some ointment on her body before raping her. After the ordeal he instructed the victim not to tell anyone and 11 days later, he raped her again,” said Netshiunda.
Mdlalose again used his prophecy modus operandi to lure another victim, a 15-year-old girl to his house where he raped her several times in February 2022 and again In August of the same year.
Mdlalose pretended to be a traditional healer when an unsuspecting mother took her 18-year-old daughter to him for cleansing.
“Mdlalose took the victim to the river where he instructed her to bathe. By the time she finished bathing he had already put a towel on the floor where he ordered her to sit and he applied his muti on her head and ears.
“The victim became unconscious and when she woke up, Mdlalose was nowhere to be found and she then realised that she was raped,” said Netshiunda.
The investigating officer was able to connect the dots and positively link Mdlalose to the crimes, and the court handed down a fitting sentence for his heinous acts.
KZN police commissioner Lieutenant General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi praised the quality investigative work by the investigating officer and applauded the court for handing down the “ultimate sentence to the cold-hearted rapist”.
“The sentence comes in a month in which the country is honouring and paying attention to all the efforts and sacrifices made by women in our society.
“Sentences such as this encourage our investigators to put in more effort and to leave no stone unturned, knowing that the court will remove those who abuse women from society for good”, said Mkhwanazi.
The Mercury