A COUPLE from Filabusi has appeared in court for allegedly
conniving to rape their 17-year-old niece on three separate occasions during
her stay at their home resulting in her falling pregnant.
The pair who cannot be named for ethical reasons were
supposed to appear before Gwanda regional magistrate, Mr Mark Dzira for trial
but the matter was postponed to a date yet to be advised.
This was after the State indicated that the complainant
could not make it to court as she was not feeling well.
The woman is facing three counts of being an accomplice to
rape while her husband is facing three counts of rape.
According to the State papers, the complainant went to
visit her aunt and her husband at their home in Filabusi in August last year
during the school holidays.
During her stay, the uncle allegedly raped her on three
separate occasions with the assistance of his wife who is the complainant’s aunt.
The complainant did not disclose her ordeal and the matter
only came to light in November last year when her grandmother realised that the
teen was pregnant.
In August 2018 during the school holidays the complainant
visited her aunt and her husband at their homestead in Filabusi. A few days
after her arrival accused persons approached her in the spare bedroom where she
was sleeping at about midnight. Her aunt then allegedly pleaded with her to
have sexual intercourse with her husband and she refused.
The aunt went on to hold her hands while her husband
removed her clothes and proceeded to rape her once.
“The accused persons committed the same offence on two
other occasions. The complainant’s aunt warned her against reporting the matter
to anyone before giving her a cell phone in order to buy her silence,” read the
State papers.
It is further alleged that the complainant went back to her
home and did not reveal the matter to anyone.
The complainant’s aunt contacted her and once again pleaded
with her not to reveal the matter to anyone before sending her $40 on Ecocash.
The matter came to light sometime in November last year
when the complainant’s grandmother suspected that the teenager was pregnant.
The old woman questioned her granddaughter who revealed
that her uncle had raped her with the assistance of her aunt.
The matter was reported to the police resulting in the
arrest of the accused persons. Chronicle
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