A Diepsloot mother broke down in tears at the Randburg Magistrate’s Court while testifying against the bail application of a 34-year-old Ethiopian man accused of raping her seven-year-old daughter.
The man was arrested after he allegedly lured the girl and a boy, 10, inside his shop with snacks and then gave the boy R5 and told him to cover his face. Then he allegedly raped the girl.
The man appeared in court on August 13 for a formal bail application after his lawyer failed to show last week.
As the mother took the stand to testify against the accused, she vividly recounted the incident that continues to haunt her family.
“I don't want the man to get bail. What he did to my daughter is horrific, and I am still shaken. Now, my daughter is too scared to play with her friends because everyone’s talking about it.”
The mother, whose identity is protected to protect the minor, told the court that the man is a danger to others.
“I want him to stay in jail. The community is terrified he might hurt someone else if he's released,” the tearful mother told the court.
She alleged that this is not the first time the accused committed such a crime.
“He did the same thing to another woman, who said he raped her and then threatened to accuse her of theft from his shop if she reported him,” she said.
The mother broke into tears and left other supporters also in tears as she explained how her boy, 10, keeps on demonstrating in the house how his younger sister was raped.
“He keeps on demonstrating to us how his younger sister was raped by this man, and I am afraid that he might go to his friends and try to demonstrate what was done to his younger sister,” she said, tears dripping down her face.
Meanwhile, the accused's lawyer, Lawrence Mathonsi, argued in court that the mother had not provided solid evidence proving his client committed the crime or that he was a danger to the community.
State prosecutor Sibongile Mncengani presented evidence that the accused's asylum visa had expired on March 9, 2022, as provided by the missing investigating officer.
She said the accused is under judicial review, and the high court will decide whether he will serve his sentence in the country or be deported to his country, if found guilty.
“If the suspect is released on bail it will put the lives of the community in danger because the incident has already caused an uproar in Diepsloot.”
Mncengani has argued that the state has a strong case, backed by solid evidence proving the accused raped the minor.
“There’s an evidence of injuries to the external genitalia of the child that indicates that she was raped,” she told the court, as she read a medical report.
The case has been postponed to Friday, August 16, for a final decision on the accused’s bail.
IOL