19/05/2025
TEACHER SENTENCED TO LIFE IMPRISONMENT FOR R**E OF A LEARNER IN CLASS DURING SCHOOL HOURS
Worcester, South Africa, The Worcester Regional Court has sentenced Jeremy Claasen, a teacher, to life imprisonment following his conviction for the r**e of a Grade 8 learner who he r**ed in class during school hours. The State does not name the victim due to the nature of the charges; she was a minor at the time of the offence, and to avoid secondary victimisation.
Acting Worcester Regional Court prosecutor Cornelius Prinsloo led evidence which revealed that Claasen, 38, was her life orientation teacher in Grade 8. He started chatting with her on social media platforms when she joined the school in Grade 7. He built up a relationship of trust and won her affection to the point where she felt comfortable around him. On 07 February 2020, she went to his classroom to charge her phone. She approached him, and after he closed the classroom door and told her to sit on a bench. He made advances towards her despite her resistance, and he r**ed her in the classroom. Three days later, she told one of her close friends, who then told one of the teachers at the school, who reported it to the principal, who contacted the police, after which the accused was arrested. The principal fulfilled the mandated duty to report as prescribed in Section 54 of the Sexual Offences and Related Matters Amendment Act 32 of 2007 mandates that sexual offences against vulnerable persons must be reported to the police. He was charged with r**e (Section 3 of Act 32 of 2007) read with Section 51(1) Act 105 of 1997.
The learner was examined at the Worcester Thuthuzela Care Centre (TCC), which also provided psycho-social support services. Adv Cindy Abdol, responsible for the TCC case, managed the docket, guided the investigation, and consulted with the victim. During the trial, the State presented the evidence of the victim through means of a closed-circuit television system with the assistance of an intermediary in a closed court session to negate any secondary trauma of testifying in the presence of the accused. The State also led the evidence of the victim’s friend as the first report, as well as a medico-legal examination conducted by a doctor, which confirmed evidence of sexual pe*******on. Court Preparation Officer Azraa Majiet supported the victim during the trial and ensured she received court preparation.
Claasen provided an alibi and told the court that he could not have perpetrated the offence as he was in court paying a traffic fine.
Prinsloo argued that the alibi was a recent fabrication as it was never put to the State witnesses during cross-examination. The court indicated the State correctly argued that the victim was a credible and reliable witness whose testimony found consistency and corroboration through the evidence of her friend and that of the doctor, in contrast to the accused’s version, which was riddled with inconsistencies and improbabilities highlighted during cross-examination. It found his alibi improbable and false beyond a reasonable doubt and convicted him on the charge of r**e.
In aggravation of sentence, Prinsloo argued that Claasen manipulated his position of authority and trust and violated a learner in an environment where she was supposed to feel safe. She was violated in an environment where she went to every day to further her education and therefore violated her fundamental rights to human dignity, bodily integrity, and basic education. Based on his predatory actions towards her, it was not a spur-of-the-moment decision. He targeted her early on and waited for the right opportunity to satisfy his perverse needs and that based on his evidence before court that there exist no substantial and compelling circumstances to deviate from the prescribed minimum sentence of life imprisonment as the interest of the community and the seriousness of the offense far outweighs the personal circumstances of the accused. The court agreed with the prosecution that there were no substantial and compelling circumstances to deviate from the prescribed minimum sentence of life imprisonment and sentenced him to life imprisonment.
Western Cape Director of Public Prosecutions, Adv Nicolette Bell, expressed dismay at the heinous crime committed by a teacher who is supposed to play a parental role to the learner while she is under his supervision. She applauded the different roles played by the prosecuting and investigating team and that played by staff at the TCC. She said TCCs provide comprehensive services and support to victims of sexual violence and help to ensure justice and closure to the victims and their families, and remove violent criminals from our society.
