He allegedly
abused a student from 2022 to last year.
Zhou, was not
asked to plead when he appeared in court over the weekend.
Allegations are
that in 2022, the complainant who is now 19 years old, heard from neighbors in
Seke that certain schools in Harare offer scholarships to underprivileged
children.
The boy then
approached popular Harare schools including Prince Edward Boys, Cranborne Boys
High School and Churchil Boys High but failed to secure a scholarship.
He then went to
Allan Willson Boys High School where he met Zhou and told him that he was
looking for a place for Form 3.
The boy
allegedly told Zhou that he was a traditional healer and Zhou offered to cater
for all the boy’s needs in exchange for spiritual help.
The court heard
that in June 2022, Zhou allegedly called the complainant to his car and told
him that, he decided to have a sexual relationship with him since he was
catering for all his expenses.
Zhou allegedly
threatened to expel the boy from school.
The state
claimed that due to desperation, the boy agreed to the request and they engaged
into sexual activity without the boy’s consent.
The boy
returned to the hostel but never told anyone about the incident.
In January
2023, Zhou allegedly took the boy from the hostel to the laundry room and
engaged into forced sexual activity for the second time.
Other students
allegedly asked him where he was and he lied to them that he had gone to take a
bath.
In February
2023, the school had a trip and Zhou insisted that the boy go with him.
It is alleged
that, as they discussed the matter, Zhou took the boy outside the hostel to his
house and abused him for the third time.
The following
morning, all Form one students boarded the bus and went to Victoria Falls.
Zhou took the
boy into his car and drove to Victoria Falls where he booked a room for him and
allegedly abused him for three days.
He allegedly
abused him again on the way back.
Zhou allegedly
abused the boy on numerous other occasions. In June 2024, the complainant went
to the Zimbabwe Anti Corruption Offices and saw a Mr Dube and told him his
story.
He however
pleaded that the matter was not for police since Zhou was paying his school
fees.
It is further
alleged that Zhou then took the boy’s phone and deleted all his messages and
pictures.
He allegedly
threatened the boy that he was well connected and no one would believe his
story.
When
complainant wanted to register for his exams, he asked for the money from Zhou
but he refused to give him.
The boy was
then helped to register for his exams by the teachers at Allan Willson Boys
High School and this allegedly did not go down well with Zhou, who expelled the
complainant from school.
After receiving
his results this year, the boy filed a complaint with the police with the
assistance of his teacher. H Metro
0 comments:
Post a Comment