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The Pretoria trial court. (Photo by Gallo Images / Sowetan / Tsheko Kabasia)
- A 45-year-old man accused of raping two minor girls at a hotel in Tshwane made his first court appearance on Monday.
- Members of the public pleaded with the courts not to release the man on bail after hearing that the defendant wanted to submit a formal request for bail.
- The accused was on probation at the time of the alleged violations, having been convicted of rape and sentenced in another case.
“If he gets bail, he will die, we will kill him.”
These were calls made by members of the public, seated in the gallery of the Pretoria Justice of the Peace, where a 45-year-old man accused of raping two minor girls at a hotel in Tshwane, made his first appearance.
When the man entered the dock on Monday, he was met with disparaging remarks, as well as the inconsolable crying of a woman who had nearly fainted upon seeing the man accused of raping her niece.
The man, whose identity cannot be revealed due to being a relative of one of the victims, is accused of raping two girls, aged 11 and 13, in a hotel room in Tshwane.
The defendant is alleged to have picked up the victims from Lotus Gardens in Atteridgeville on Friday, took them to a liquor store in Pretoria West, and then headed to the CBD where he rented the hotel room.
READ | Man accused of raping 2 minor girls at the Tshwane hotel is convicted of rapist and wants to plead guilty
In his first interaction with the court, the defendant said he did not want to waste court time and wanted to plead guilty.
He has been charged with two counts of rape and two of kidnapping. Police also revealed that the defendant was on probation, having previously been convicted and served time behind bars for rape.
After a short postponement, he opted for legal aid and told the court that he wanted to apply for bail.
No bond
As the matter was postponed until December 7 for a formal request for bail, members of the public sitting in the gallery began shouting, “No bail, no bail, no bail.”
A member of the public said, “Please, adoration, do not bail this man.”
Another shouted: “If he gets bail, he will die, we will kill him.”
As orderlies tried to regain control of the courtroom, the aunt of one of the victims began to cry again as she was comforted by other family members, who also had tears in their eyes.
Outside of court, the aunt, who cannot be named to protect the identity of the victim, tried to relate the ordeal.
Traumatized and broken
He said they were looking for his niece and friend after they disappeared, and upon learning where they were and what had happened, his entire life fell apart.
“Now the girl is traumatized, I don’t know what to say, I can’t face her,” he said.
She continued:
I am so hurt, it is so painful, how can an old man rape innocent children? We can’t sleep, we can’t eat because of what happened. I didn’t think our family would ever face a situation like this.
He said his niece has not stopped crying and has also had trouble sleeping since the incident occurred.
The victim’s mother is equally traumatized and was unable to appear in court due to her emotional state.
Themba Masango, the general secretary of the Not in My Name lobby, which has been supporting the families, told News24 that he was disappointed when the defendant said he wanted to apply for bail after telling the court that he wanted to plead guilty.
“Maybe he received different legal advice, that’s his right,” Masango said.
“What we are requesting is that this man be given the harshest sentence. Our country is currently in a second pandemic of these types of crimes that are occurring, and we cannot afford this.”
Masango also asked that the political parties not politicize the case.
“These are real human beings involved here, these are children who are involved here, when you join, please come from a genuine point of view to seek justice.”
The matter was postponed until December 7 for a formal request for bail.
