A 24-year-old Beit Bridge man employed in South Africa was sentenced to an effective two years in jail on Monday for having sex with a 15-year-old local girl.

The man, who was employed at a farm near Musina, was convicted on his own plea of guilty by Magistrate Gloria Takundwa. He was sentenced to four years in jail, of which two years were conditionally suspended for five years.

In passing the sentence, the magistrate noted that there was a high prevalence of cases of that nature and said a custodial sentence would serve as a deterrent to would-be offenders.

In mitigation, Ndou pleaded with the court to be lenient with him, arguing that the girl had lied to him about her age. He also told the court that he had been tempted into having sex with the victim since she had eloped with him and the two were sharing a room.

The prosecutor, Mr Tawanda Musina, said that sometime in September, Ndou approached the complainant. He then proposed sex to the girl and she accepted. It was testified that two months later, Ndou started inviting the girl to his room where they would have sex.

Some local community members discovered the affair and alerted the girl’s parents, who quizzed her until she told them about the affair. A report was made to the police, leading to Ndou’s arrest.