A 22-year-old South African man has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for raping his biological mother at her home in Carnarvon, Northern Cape.
The man was sentenced by the Carnarvon Regional Court after DNA evidence linked him to the November 2025 assault, leading him to plead guilty to rape.
The 42-year-old woman was at home with her partner on November 23, 2025, when the incident occurred. Both had been drinking before going to sleep.
The accused had also been drinking at a friend’s house before returning home.
He found his mother and her partner asleep and sexually assaulted his mother while she was unconscious.
The woman woke during the assault and realised what was happening before confronting her son, who fled the house.
She later informed her partner, and they reported the incident to the police.
National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson Mojalefa Senokoatsane said the accused initially denied the allegation in a statement following his arrest.
However, DNA evidence subsequently connected him to the offence.
“Faced with the compelling evidence presented by the State, including the complainant’s testimony and the DNA results, the accused ultimately pleaded guilty to the charge of rape,” Senokoatsane said.
During her victim impact statement, the woman told the court that she felt deeply hurt and betrayed by her son, whom she had raised as a single mother.
She said the assault continued to affect her psychologically, adding that she receives counselling and struggles to sleep because of the trauma.
The court took the guilty plea into consideration when determining the sentence but found that the seriousness of the offence warranted a lengthy prison term.
The man was sentenced to 20 years’ direct imprisonment and ordered to have his details entered into South Africa’s National Register for Sex Offenders.
Erizia Rubyjeana
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