Zimpapers Logo

Margaret Matibiri Herald Reporter
A 39-YEAR-OLD Harare man appeared in court yesterday charged with raping and impregnating a 13-year-old relative. The man (name withheld to protect the identity of the victim) was yesterday hauled before Harare magistrate Ms Bianca Makwande facing rape charges He was granted a $100 bail and is expected to appear in court on November 29.Prosecutor Ms Audrey Chogumaira alleged that sometime this year, the accused person went to visit his brother and upon arrival, he found his 13-year-old niece alone at home cleaning up as her parents had already left for work.

It is alleged that he entered the house and pushed the complainant to the bed, removed her clothes and sexually assaulted her orally. The court heard that the accused person went on to remove his clothes and had unprotected sexual intercourse with his niece without her consent.

It is alleged that the accused person told the complainant not to talk to anyone about the abuse. The court further heard that before this incident, the complainant would go to her uncle’s place to get her hair cut and he would fondle her breasts several times and threatened her that if she told anyone he would do worse things to her.

The matter came to light when the complainant became pregnant and her mother’s young sister asked her about it, leading her to reveal the ordeal. In a similar case, a 57-year-old Epworth man who raped his 11-year-old sister and threatened to evict her from his house if she reported the matter, last week appeared before magistrate Ms Bianca Makwande facing three counts of rape.

The accused person (name withheld to protect the name of the victim) was denied bail and remanded in custody to December 3. Allegations are that sometime in October at around 7am, the complainant was washing plates in the house when the accused person started fondling her breasts.

The court heard that the accused person grabbed his sister and laid her back on the floor and removed her clothes as well as his clothes and had unprotected sexual intercourse with the complainant without her consent.

It is alleged that the accused person threatened to evict the complainant from his home if she reported the matter to anyone and this routine went on in the same manner on three occasions.

The court heard that the accused vowed to keep forcing himself on his sister until he got married and threatened to evict her if she reported the matter to anyone. The matter came to light after the complainant complained to her friend about the abuse.