Bulawayo serial rapist sentenced to 232 years in jail

A serial rapist from Bulawayo has been sentenced to 232 years in jail, the National Prosecuting Authority has said,

Prosper Bhule aged 30 a serial rapist terrorized teenage girls in Bulawayo aged between 13 and 19 from 2018 December to March 2022 handed the sentence on Friday at Tredgold Regional Magistrates
Court.

All in all, he was charged with 18 counts of rape.

“The accused person targeted the girls when they were alone at home or on the way to school or on an errand,” said the NPA. “He lured them from the security of their homes by saying that he had been sent to advise the girls that their parents, guardians or relatives had sent them some parcels or groceries from South Africa or vegetables from the local market. He would insist that the girls must go to the
collection point with him to get the parcels.”

The NPA said Bhule was a skilled liar who would convince the girls to the supposed collection point.

“He took the victims through a bushy area where he would threaten them with an okapi knife, kick them with booted feet and assault them with fists before raping them,” the NPA further revealed. “He also robbed the victims of their cellphones.”

Fortunately all victims made reports to the police, with descriptions showing they were dealing with with a sophisticated criminal who premeditated his crimes.

“He gathered information about the victims and the frequency with which they were likely to receive parcels, groceries etc from relatives and used the information to commit his crimes,” the NPA added.

The Zimbabwe Republic Police’s CID Homicide coordinated a manhunt which caught with Bhule.