Particle.news
Download on the App Store

Limpopo Man, 54, Arrested in Alleged Rape of Four Children

The case underscores low prosecution rates for child-rape cases under a system with mandatory reporting of suspected abuse.

Overview

  • Police arrested a 54-year-old in Lebowakgomo after four children, ages 7 to 9, were allegedly raped inside his home on Thursday.
  • SAPS investigators say he took two children into the house, then the other two, and later threatened them not to tell their parents.
  • A grandmother noticed unusual behavior in one child and, after questioning, the families reported the assault to police.
  • The Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences Unit made the arrest, and the man is due in the Lebowakgomo Magistrate’s Court on Monday on four rape counts.
  • Provincial police chief Thembi Hadebe condemned the alleged crimes, and official data noted 536 statutory-rape reports in the latest 10-month period with few prosecutions and widespread under-reporting.