Witness blames complainant's mother in Mojadigo rape case
Larona Makhaiza | Wednesday July 15, 2026 13:44
Mojadigo, who is serving 20 years sentence for rape, is engulfed in yet another rape trial involving a teenage girl. As the trial continued yesterday before Senior Magistrate Tshepo Thedi, the state witness, Amogelang Matlolela testified that she repeatedly urged the child’s mother to report the matter to authorities after discovering dubious WhatsApp conversations.
“I saw the accused’s number saved with a heart emoji, and I went through their chat and found unpleasant texts. I forwarded those texts to myself, my mother and the mother of the complainant,” she testified. Matlolela said the messages immediately raised alarm and the family considered taking the matter to Child Protection Services. However, she said she was met with resistance from the mother.
“We wanted to take the matter to Child Protection, but her mother was reluctant, saying she knows her child well when she tells the truth or not. She said I should just put her on the next bus,” she said. She told the court that among the messages was one in which Mojadigo allegedly requested the complainant to send him a video. “He asked her to send him a video, and she sent him a view once video. She later asked if he had missed it and he replied with crying emojis,” she said.
Other messages allegedly referred to Mojadigo being angry at the victim after she told another lady about their relationship. She further said another conversation involved the complainant informing Mojadigo that she wanted her to see a gynecologist and a psychologist. Despite relaying this information to the complainant’s mother, Matlolela said there was still no urgency to involve law enforcement.
“I narrated to my mother and her mother what had happened, but her mother continued saying I should put the child on a bus,” she testified. She also recalled an occasion when her domestic helper found the complainant crying. “My helper found the victim crying. She then told me that she felt that her mother was not taking her seriously because she was getting her period twice a month,” she said.
Matlolela said she eventually returned the victim to her mother on May 7, 2024, after everything without reporting the matter. During cross-examination, rape convict Mojadigo questioned the witness why she had not reported the matter herself if she wholly believed a crime had been committed.
“As a responsible mother woman, when her mother said don’t report, why didn’t you report this during the two weeks she was with you?” he asked. She responded, “Her mom said we should wait and gather evidence even though she was slow, and Sethunya said I could only report once I had been given permission,” she responded.
Mojadigo also challenged her on whether she had personally witnessed any misconduct. “No,” the witness responded. The trial is set to continue on September 3. Case continues.