There was a deafening silence in the Hlanganani Regional Court in Waterval when a serial rapist, Moses Hungwe (26), made his appearance on Monday this week.

Hungwe was finally sentenced to 11 life sentences on 11 charges of rape. The rape charges against him were initially 20, but the court had to withdraw at least nine charges because no witnesses or complainants had come forward to testify against the accused. The victims’ ages ranged from 15 to 83 years, said the court.

Magistrate NC Mthombeni ruled out the argument given by the accused's lawyer, Mr Muhanelwa, as unrealistic in relation to the circumstances surrounding the case against Hungwe. Mr Muhanelwa had argued that Hungwe had had consensual sexual intercourse with the women, who later reported him to the police; he called the complainants “liars and fabricators”.

The court further indicated that it was unlikely that all the women could lie about Hungwe's raping them, considering the fact that several mobile phones belonging to some of the complainants were found in the accused's possession during his arrest. DNA samples retrieved at the crime scenes or from some of the victims had matched the samples taken from Hungwe.

“It cannot be accepted that consensual sex had been engaged in between the accused person and the complainants,” said Magistrate Mthombeni. “Why is it that he chose his spots - the bushes, vegetation fields - and at uncommon hours of the day? All the complainants also denied ever knowing Hungwe before the rape incidents.”

The state prosecutor described the accused's behaviour as “animalistic” when weighing up the brutality he had used in assaulting some of the victims during the rape incidents. The accused's lawyer appealed to the court to sentence Hungwe to a 10-year jail term on each of the 11 counts and further requested that the sentences run concurrently. The application was refused vehemently. “There's no society in the world who would allow their mothers, sisters, daughters and wives to be sexually molested when they are on their own,” stated Mr Mthombeni upon sentencing Hungwe.

The court then declared him unfit to possess a firearm and his name was entered into the national register of sexual offenders.

During the trial, it was heard that the rape incidents took place between 2007 and 2011 in different places, such as Mashamba, Bungeni, Mufeba and Mukondeni. Hungwe is originally a Zimbabwean national who was staying at Chavani village and Hlanganani township before his arrest.

One senior victim, who refused to be named, mocked the accused after his sentencing. “You'll rape better in jail now,” she said, pointing a mocking finger at him.