Rape still rampant in Letlhakane

Chakalisa Dube | Thursday March 19, 2020 16:00

 

Rape still rampant in Letlhakane

The police said that they have been looking for the man since Monday.

The station commander at Letlhakane police Michael Maphephu stated that the man disappeared just after the matter was reported and might be outside Letlhakane. “We are optimistic that we will arrest the suspect soon,” he said.

Maphephu noted that preliminary investigations suggest that since 2018 the man has been waylaying his niece on her way from school. He would then take her to a nearby bush and repeatedly rape her. Early this year, after growing tired of her uncle’s antics the young girl decided to abandon school.

Maphepu added, “The girl’s teacher went to her home to establish why she was not coming to school. That is when the girl disclosed her ordeal and the matter was reported to the police”.

Maphephu also said that police in the area are also looking for one of two men who reportedly raped a 19-year-old girl in the village. The suspect, currently on the run, allegedly acted together with a 24-year-old, who is in police custody. The incident happened last Saturday at around 5am when the 19-year-old was on her way home from a nightclub.

Rape within the Letlhakane policing area has been a source of concern for some time. Rape cases in the area average four in a month. Despite several interventions such as public education campaigns and seminars, containing rape has proven difficult.

Late last month a well-known man in the village raped a primary school learner in the village before fleeing the scene following intervention by members of the public. He would later be arrested at a funeral after being identified by the mother of the victim.