Police have welcomed the life sentence that a regional court in Rustenburg in the North West has meted out on a convicted rapist.

#sapsNW The Acting Provincial Commissioner of North West, Major General Patrick Asaneng, has welcomed the life sentence handed to Ben Sedireng Jacob (55) by the Bafokeng Regional Court in Tlhabane on 31/07.

Jacob kidnapped and raped his ex-girlfriend (then 24) in October 2023 at… pic.twitter.com/3OUmhsCTYq

— SA Police Service 🇿🇦 (@SAPoliceService) August 2, 2025

Fifty five-year-old, Ben Jacob had been found guilty of kidnapping and raping his ex-girlfriend. The incident happened, in October 2023 when the woman was 24.

Provincial police spokesperson, Sabata Mokgwabone says Jacob was arrested four days after the incident.

“According to reports, the complainant was on her way to Covid View when Jacob approached and grabbed her from behind. The convict who accused the victim of rushing to her new boyfriend, assaulted her with fists and pushed her into the stream. He further strangled and bit her on the face,” says Mokgwabone.

“The accused forced the victim to go with him to his friend’s place where he raped her. Upon being released the next day, the complainant went to Boitekong Police Station to register a case, which was investigated by the Rustenburg Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences Unit,” he adds.