A 25-YEAR-OLD man from Bulawayo yesterday appeared in court
for allegedly raping his girlfriend in 2015. Mufaro Mutanda allegedly raped his
girlfriend, who was 22 at the time and a student at the National University of
Science and Technology, after taking her to a lodge following a braai.
He appeared before Bulawayo Regional magistrate Mrs
Sibonginkosi Mnkandla and pleaded not guilty to a charge of rape. The
magistrate remanded him to April 29 for continuation of trial.
Prosecuting, Mr Simbarashe Manyiwa said sometime in
December 2015 at around 8PM, the complainant received a phone call from Mutanda
who was her then boyfriend, telling her that he was on his way to pick her up
for a braai.
“Mutanda picked her up at the National University of
Science and Technology (Nust) campus where the complainant was a student at
that time. They drove to a place which the complainant could not recognise
because it was already dark. The accused person and his two male friends
started chatting outside the car. When they got back in the car they stated
that they had no fuel to take complainant back to campus,” said Mr Manyiwa.
“Mutanda and his friend suggested that they were going to
spend the night at a lodge in Barham Green suburb and promised to accompany her
back to campus the next day. Payments were made and rooms divided. Accused
person and the complainant shared the same bed for the night.”
The court heard that the following morning, the complainant
woke up to find Mutanda on top of her and when she asked him what he was doing,
he did not respond. “Mutanda went on to undress her and raped her without
protection,” he said.
Mr Manyiwa said complainant fought Mutanda and he sustained
bruises on the arm.
The court heard that Mutanda’s victim spent years
attempting to commit suicide until this year when she reported the matter to
the police to find closure. Chronicle
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