Limpopo man’s particulars included in the sex offenders’ registry for rape

The National Register for Sexual Offenders (NRSO) now includes the name of Khutso Ramatseba following his conviction on two separate counts of brutal rape in Tzaneen, Limpopo.

Ramatseba (40) has since been sentenced in the Tzaneen Regional Court to life plus 10 years in jail. The court ordered that he serve the sentences separately – one after the other.

The register, established through the Criminal Law (Sexual Offenses and Related Matters) Act in 2007, captures the particulars of persons convicted of sexual offenses against children and mentally-challenged people.

The purpose of the register is to prevent repeat offenses and protect children and people with disability. A convicted person may not be employed to work with vulnerable people.

In 2022, the Act was amended to expand the scope of the register to include all sex offenders – and not only offenders against children and mentally-challenged persons.

Late night on 8 March 2014, Ramatseba pulled his car next to three girls walking from a liquor outlet at Maphauwe village. He then forced an 18-year old girl into the car and drove to his home at Mamakata village where he raped her at knifepoint.

After the act, he walked her, but then pulled her into the bushes and raped again. He threatened to kill her if she dared to report the matter.

The same month, Ramatseba – wielding a beer bottle – attacked another 18-year old girl while she was walking from church and raped her.  He then kicked her before fleeing the scene.

Police spokesperson, Colonel Malesela Ledwaba, said the investigation was “lengthy”, but Ramatseba was eventually identified as the perpetrator and linked to the crimes through DNA tests.

“The court ordered that the particulars of the accused be included in the National Register for Sex Offenders,” Ledwaba said.