A man convicted of kidnapping, raping and murdering an 8-year-old girl, Tazne van Wyk, has been sentenced to nine life terms in Cape town, South Africa.
Moehydian Pangaker, 57, was sentenced in the Western Cape High Court on Tuesday, February 14, 2023.
The girl, from Connaught Estate, in Ravensmead, was last seen on February 7, 2020, after she left her home to buy a sucker lollipop at a shop, a few metres from her home.
The child’s body was found in a stormwater drain, along the N1 highway in Worcester, 12 days later. Pangaker had pointed out the location to the police.
Pangaker was found guilty of 21 of 27 charges in October, 2022. These charges include eight counts of rape of children, sexual assault, sexual exploitation of children, several counts of assault on child, kidnapping, incest, desecration of a corpse and absconding from parole.
While Pangaker maintained his innocence throughout the trial, Judge Alan Maher did not mince his words as he delivered his judgment in October last year. He described Pangaker as a sexual predator with a high sex drive who preyed on little girls.
Pangaker has previous convictions ranging from 1981 to 2004.
During his sentencing, Maher said Pangaker was a deceitful, manipulative and cruel individual who could not be placed back into society.
