MARTIN MAWAYA
“Failure to scream or shout by the complainant during rape does not mean that the victim consented to sex.”
The remarks were made by Gweru Regional Magistrate Christopher Maturure while handing down an effective 18 years imprisonment sentence to a Mvuma man who raped and impregnated his stepdaughter.
Aged 42 and from village 2B Nehanda in Mvuma, Morice stood trial for raping his 14-year-old stepdaughter.
He was convicted after a full trial.
Delivering the sentence, Magistrate Maturure said it was sad that the accused had resorted to quenching his sexual appetite and abusing his stepdaughter in the comfort of his home.
The court heard that during the night in the month of February 2025, Morice entered the kitchen where the complainant (name withheld) was sleeping with her younger sister, pretending to cook his chicken cuts since they had prepared kapenta fish that day.
While in the kitchen, Morice suddenly removed his trousers and remained with a boxer short.
He placed the trousers on the door before closing the door and entering into the complainant’s blanket, under the pretext of warming himself.
The state said while in the complainant’s blankets, the victim moved away from the accused and turned her back on him, facing the other side.
The court heard that the accused then grabbed the complainant from the back and pulled her trousers, skin-tight and pant, down to her knees.
The victim tried to scream, but she was threatened with death if she failed to comply.
Morice then pulled the complainant closer to him, removed his boxer short, lifted the victim’s leg, and had unprotected sex once with his stepdaughter.
The matter came to light on June 6, when the complainant was interrogated by her mother, who suspected that she was pregnant, leading to the police report and arrest of the accused person.
During mitigation, Morice denied impregnating his stepdaughter but told the court that the sex was consensual.
“I was influenced by evil spirits to engage with a minor in sexual activities,” Morice told the magistrate.
