A Zimbabwean man, John Hope Muchirahondo, has been found guilty of multiple rapes spanning over a decade in New Zealand.
For the serial rapist it seems no woman was off limits. Drunk women. Women passed out or sleeping. Women he was in casual relationships with. Mothers of his children. Partners. There was no age preference, no “type”.
During his trial in the High Court at Christchurch, the 38-year-old claimed that any sexual act was consensual, that the women wanted him, pursued him, even begged him. Even those vomiting, snoring, unconscious. Even those who said no repeatedly and tried to fight him off in the minutes, seconds and during the “sex”. Many of these acts were filmed – most without the knowledge or consent of the women.
His former partner, Sasha (not her real name), has bravely come forward to share her harrowing experiences, shedding light on the manipulative and predatory nature of the convicted rapist. Muchirahondo, 38, faced charges relating to eight women, with the jury finding him guilty of raping eight and sexually violating seven others.
The court heard evidence of a pattern of abuse, targeting women regardless of their age, relationship to him, or state of intoxication.
The trial, held in the High Court at Christchurch, saw Muchirahondo consistently deny the accusations, claiming all sexual encounters were consensual. He even went so far as to assert that women who were drunk, passed out, or actively resisting his advances were, in fact, enthusiastic participants.
He dismissed the Crown’s description of him as a predator with a laugh. However, after nearly ten days of deliberation, the jury delivered a guilty verdict on a total of 15 charges. Many of the assaults were filmed without the victims’ knowledge or consent.
Sasha’s testimony was pivotal in the case. She detailed numerous instances of rape, recounting how Muchirahondo ignored her repeated pleas of “I don’t want to. I won’t have sex with you,” even when she was too intoxicated to consent.
The jury found him guilty of one rape in 2019 but acquitted him on two other counts relating to Sasha. Despite the acquittals, Sasha remains resolute in her account of the events, stating, “I find it hard when people say to me ‘at least it’s over’… For us, it’s never over.”
Sasha’s relationship with Muchirahondo began in 2009 after they met at a Christchurch bar. Their relationship was on-again, off-again, with periods of consensual sex. However, in 2019, Sasha decided to end their sexual relationship, informing Muchirahondo that he was no longer welcome at her home. His response was chillingly controlling: “He came over after work and said ‘you don’t get to make that decision… it’s not your decision or not if I was to sleep with you’,” she recounted in her police interview. “That’s the way he controlled me and made me feel like I cannot decide what happens to my body.”
One specific incident, which led to a rape conviction, involved Muchirahondo dropping off Sasha’s child after football practice. He asked to use the toilet, and despite her reluctance, she allowed him in to avoid appearing unfriendly in front of her child. He then proceeded to push her towards her bedroom. Sasha described the ensuing events to the police: “At that moment I knew what he wanted to do and I didn’t want to do it so I said, ‘I don’t want to have sex with you’… He kept pushing me. I said ‘I won’t have sex with you’. He heard me because he laughed. I didn’t fight back, I didn’t yell or scream.”
She continued, detailing her feelings of being trapped and powerless: “At this point, I’m feeling quite trapped and like I didn’t have a choice… like my feelings about it – not wanting to do it – didn’t matter. It was going to happen anyway – he didn’t stop when I said no, he didn’t acknowledge it at all he just laughed. I was scared. He wasn’t a stranger and I’d had sex with him before so I thought ‘I’ll just lie here and let him do what he wants… my son’s in the lounge and if I don’t yell out and I don’t fight my son won’t get hurt… he wouldn’t know this was happening, he wouldn’t be afraid’.”
Sasha’s testimony highlighted the insidious nature of Muchirahondo’s abuse. She described feeling used and objectified, robbed of her autonomy. Even when she cried, Muchirahondo, noticing her distress, merely commented, “you look sad,” without ceasing his actions. She recalled thinking, “All of my objections are falling on deaf ears… I’m stupid to say no ‘cos I don’t have a choice. Lying back and waiting until it’s over, that’ll be the quickest way to get him out.”
The trial also heard evidence from Sasha regarding two other alleged rapes, for which Muchirahondo was acquitted. Despite the jury’s decisions, Sasha stands by her account, explaining that she initially didn’t recognise the incidents as rape due to her limited understanding of what constituted rape and the pre-existing consensual aspects of their relationship. She admitted to feeling partly responsible, believing that because they had engaged in consensual sex earlier, subsequent non-consensual acts wouldn’t “count”. She confessed, “I thought it wouldn’t count if I said no because I’d just had sex with him. I didn’t think it was wrong I guess. I thought ‘what’s the point in telling anyone, it’s kind of my fault’.”
Muchirahondo’s defence lawyer argued that while Sasha may have said “no” in the hallway, she did not explicitly refuse consent in the bedroom, implying consent or a reasonable belief of consent. He further suggested that Sasha’s later complaint stemmed from bitterness and a desire to gain leverage in their relationship disputes.
Sasha’s experience highlights the complexities of reporting sexual assault, particularly when the perpetrator is someone known to the victim. Initially, her report to the police did not lead to charges, creating a sense of frustration and fear that his behaviour would continue. She stated, “Reporting it was so hard. And then finding out it wasn’t taken seriously… I feel like that emboldened him, and led to him offending more. Reporting him was supposed to stop other women from getting hurt and it almost made it worse.”
After the final assault, a friend of Sasha’s, alerted by Sasha’s distress, reported her concerns to the police, emphasising the dangerous nature of Muchirahondo. This ultimately led to a full investigation and the eventual prosecution.
Muchirahondo, who was born in Zimbabwe, will be sentenced in December. The Crown will seek an indefinite sentence of preventive detention. Sasha, reflecting on her ordeal, described Muchirahondo as “an animal… disgusting… a psychopath… not safe,” adding that he possessed a dangerous charm that masked his true nature.
She concluded, “He is very charming, initially. That’s the dangerous part – he can be very charming, charismatic. But I think he hates women – he really hates women. He is an awful man.”
Her statement underscores the importance of supporting survivors of sexual violence and challenging the harmful misconceptions surrounding rape. The sentencing marks the end of the legal proceedings, but for Sasha and the other victims, the healing process has only just begun.
