Convicted sex offender Johannes Kleinhans’s wife is willing to have him back home if he is sentenced to house arrest.
|||Cape Town - Convicted sex offender Johannes Kleinhans’s wife is willing to have him back home if he is sentenced to house arrest for sexually assaulting three teenage girls, the Parow Regional Court heard.
Magistrate Amanda van Leeve on Wednesday questioned Kleinhans’s family support as no-one had been to court to publicly show support for him.
Kleinhans’s lawyer Johann Grobbelaar led evidence during pre-sentence proceedings to show that Kleinhans, 74, convicted of 95 counts including sexual assault of minors, was a suitable candidate for correctional supervision.
A Correctional Services document stating that Kleinhans had received at least 30 visits from relatives during 13 months in Pollsmoor Prison and another, signed by his wife, Hermie, were handed to the court.
Hermie Kleinhans, 73, confirmed that her husband of 53 years could return to their Parow North home.
But prosecutor Herculine Swart handed in a report from Correctional Services head Johan le Grange listing the problems with house arrest.
Le Grange said it was not “practically possible” for an offender to be monitored for 24 hours and that correctional officers visited people randomly two or three times a week.
Counts Kleinhans was convicted of included indecent assault, sexual assault, sexual grooming, compelled self-sexual assault, using children to benefit from child pornography and the illegal possession of child pornography.
The girls, aged between 13 and 15 during 2009 and 2010 when the offences were committed, were paid or received gifts in exchange.
The 89 pornographic images of the girls showed their naked bodies, exposed genitals and other body parts.
Three victim impact statements were handed to the court in aggravation of sentence.
In it, the girls said they struggled to come to terms with what had happened to them.
One girl wrote: “I feel rage and pity for him (Kleinhans)”. Another tried to commit suicide twice.
Closing arguments are expected on Tuesday.
jade.otto@inl.co.za
Cape Argus