A 48 year old cane cutter charged with the rape of a 78 year old woman was today sentenced to 10 years imprisonment.

On 28th August this year, John Samuel Naidu raped the 78 year old woman who was alone at home while the rest of the family members were out to attend some family matters.

Naidu knew the victim and usually visited the victim's house in Labasa.

The court heard that Naidu ran into the cane field after raping the woman when he heard a truck driven by the victim's grandson coming into the compound.

The victim later relayed the incident to her family and the matter was reported to the Police.

Magistrate Ropate Cabelawa while sentencing Naidu to 10 years in prison said that his action was similar to that of an animal and the victim was old enough to be his mother or grandmother and the stigma attached to the incident will torment her for the rest of her life.

In his mitigation, Naidu told the court that he was married with 3 children and was remorseful and asked for forgiveness and pleaded guilty. However, considering Naidu's previous convictions and the fact that in 2003 he was sentenced to 6 months imprisonment for a similar offence he was sentenced to 10 years.