The man from
Pumula North suburb, whose name is being withheld to protect the victims, was
alleged to have raped and indecently assaulted the two juveniles in January
this year.
In acquitting
the accused, Western Commonage regional magistrate Mrs Sibongile Marondedze
noted that there were inconsistencies in the testimony of the two complainants.
“After hearing
the testimonies by the complainants, the court noted that there is a lack of
evidence linking the accused to the rape and indecent assault. Accordingly, he
is found not guilty and acquitted,” ruled the magistrate.
According to
the prosecutor, Ms Christine Manyika, the first incident was alleged to have
occurred in November last year at around 1pm. The man was alleged to have taken
advantage of the absence of the complainants’ grandmother, and allegedly
dragged the 14-year-old girl into his bedroom.
He allegedly
pushed her onto the bed and raped her.
“He then pulled
a knife from his pocket and threatened to stab and kill her if she either
screamed or resisted his advances. He then raped her,” said Ms Manyika.
On another
occasion, the court heard, the man again took advantage of the complainant’s
grandmother’s absence and followed the 12-year-old girl into her bedroom. He
then allegedly touched her buttocks several times without her consent.
“The
complainant screamed, but the accused threatened her with unspecified
consequences if she told anyone what had happened. Since then, the accused has
regularly touched the complainant’s buttocks whenever he wanted, each time her
grandmother was away,” said Ms Manyika.
The court was
told that in January this year, the victims’ aunt, who was in South Africa,
returned and quizzed the two girls about their interactions with the man.
The
complainants then revealed that they had been abused leading to the man’s
arrest. Chronicle
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