Allan Charles Reed, a 58-year-old teacher from a school in Kuruman, Northern Cape, will feel like he got away scot-free after the sentence he received for the heinous crime he committed.
Kuruman teacher gets six years for rape – A slap in the face for the victim?
On Wednesday, the Kuruman Regional Court, after sitting with Reeds’ case for six years, handed down a sentence that some might argue was unjust.
The teacher, according to police spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Dimakatso Mooi, has been sentenced to six years direct imprsonment, two of which will remain suspended for five years, on the condition that Reeds doesn’t commit a crime of the same magnitude.
In February 2015, a day after Valentine’s Day, the 12-year-old pupil whose identity has been concealed approached Reeds’ classroom hoping to get assistance from the teacher.
The details of the sodomy that occurred in that classroom never made it past the walls of the Kuruman Regional Court. However, enough evidence was presented to convince the court that Reeds had indeed sexually assaulted a minor.
In a move that has polarised the justice system, Reeds was granted bail, despite vehement opposition from the State.
For reasons not made public, the case against the Kuruman teacher idled for six years before a judgment was handed down.
Rapist teacher will be added in public sex offenders list
Perhaps, a silver lining in the controversial court ruling came when Reeds was informed that he would never be granted a licence to carry a firearm.
“The accused was also declared unfit to possess a firearm and his name will also be entered on the National Register of Sexual offenders,” Lt-Col. Mooi said.
Northern Cape’s head of Family and Child Services (FCS) Brigadier Nicky Mills applauded the persistence of the FCS commander Captain Caren Nel in ensuring that Reeds was held accountable for his heinous actions.
However, a daunting reality that rests on this case is with good behaviour, Reeds could be out of prison in less than four years.