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Leonard Ncube Victoria Falls Reporter
A SOLDIER stationed at 1.2 Infantry Battalion in Hwange waylaid a seven-year-old girl he encountered walking along a foot path and attempted to rape her, a court heard.

Theophilous Gutukunhuwa, 26, who is a rifleman in the Zimbabwe National Army, was cornered when the clever girl gave police investigators an apt description of him and also managed to positively identify him after his arrest.

Gutukunhuwa, who claimed intoxication, was convicted on his own plea of guilty to attempted rape by Hwange magistrate Lindiwe Maphosa.

The magistrate sentenced him to an effective three years in jail.

Maphosa said courts had a duty to protect minor children given the prevalence of cases of abuse in the country.

“Cases of rape of minor children are now prevalent while attempted rape is also a serious crime. A message therefore needs to be sent to society so as to deter would-be-offenders and protect the helpless child.

“The accused claimed he was intoxicated while the complainant didn’t suffer any harm which reduces the moral blameworthiness of the accused.

“However, the age of the complainant and the fact that the accused is a ZNA member is aggravatory as he almost deflowered an innocent young girl whom he should’ve protected,” said the magistrate.

In coming up with an appropriate sentence, Maphosa said, she considered that the accused was a first offender who showed contrition by pleading guilty.

“You’ve a pregnant wife and you need a sentence that’ll allow you to rejoin your family. A sentence of three years will be appropriate in this case,” said Maphosa.

Prosecuting, Tomupei Mbiza said the Grade One pupil was coming from Nechibondo Primary School in the coal mining town on July 15 when she met Gutukunhuwa who was going in the opposite direction.

“The accused was walking along Prospect Hill Road towards Number 1 at 2.25PM when he met the complainant who was going in the opposite direction from school. He greeted the complainant and asked if she knew where he could get a house to rent,” said the prosecutor.

The girl told Gutukunhuwa that there was a room at her parents’ place and she offered to give him her mother’s phone number.

While they were still talking, the soldier grabbed the girl by the hand and dragged her into a nearby bush where he forced her to lie on the ground.

Gutukunhuwa removed the girl’s track bottom and panties and also lowered his track bottom to knee level before lying on top of her.

Mbiza said the sound of an approaching vehicle scared the would-be rapist who then got off the girl and disappeared into the bush.

The girl fled in the direction of the car and narrated her ordeal to the motorist, Pry Akalowa.

The little girl described Gutukunhuwa to Akalowa who then helped her report the matter to the police leading to Gutukunhuwa’s arrest. The girl also managed to positively identify him.