Serial rapist and murderer targeting young women seeking jobs sentenced to life behind bars
Fifty-two-year-old Johan Williams was this week granted eight life terms with a further sixty years in prison for a spate of femicides between 2012 and 2018.
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CAPE TOWN - A serial rapist and murderer who targeted desperate young women with the promise of a job has been sentenced to life behind bars.
Fifty-two-year-old Johan Williams was this week handed eight life terms and 60 years in prison for a spate of femicides between 2012 and 2018.
Prosecutors said the sentencing sends a strong message that gender-based violence (GBV) will not be tolerated.
Williams has been convicted of 19 charges, including six counts of kidnapping, five counts of rape, and three counts of murder, among others.
National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) spokesperson Eric Ntabazalila said Williams kidnapped, raped, and murdered his victims, Natalie Jonkers, Maria Isaacs, and Chantelle Matthyssen.
"He targeted desperate young women, promising them employment opportunities, only for them to be found raped, murdered, and buried in shallow graves."
The 52-year-old serial rapist maintained his innocence throughout the trial, despite pointing police to the area where he buried his victims.