shloboe boe
Tsenulo Moyo
A 39-YEAR-OLD man from Mahatshula North in Bulawayo was arrested allegedly for repeatedly raping his 15-year-old stepdaughter, resulting in her falling pregnant.
The abuse started when the girl was 13 years old and continued until this year, when the victim fell pregnant. The pregnancy was lawfully terminated while she was three months pregnant.
This was heard when the accused, whose name is being withheld to protect the victim, appeared before Bulawayo regional magistrate Matthew Mutiro facing three counts of rape.
He pleaded not guilty to all three counts. He was, however, convicted after trial and remanded in custody to January 17 for sentencing.
While convicting the accused, the magistrate took into consideration the fact that the offence had emotionally disturbed the victim, although the pregnancy was lawfully terminated while she was three months pregnant.
“The complainant’s story was clear and straightforward. She gave her evidence convincingly. She was consistent in her narration of what took place. She could have pointed at anyone as being responsible for the pregnancy, but she only pointed at her stepfather,” said the magistrate.
Circumstances are that sometime in 2022, the complainant’s mother went to attend a funeral in Nkayi, leaving the victim and her younger sister in the custody of the accused.
The accused is said to have arrived home drunk in the afternoon, entered the victim’s bedroom while her younger sister was playing, and raped the victim.
It was further added that although the victim cried out and was bleeding, the accused did not stop. After the act, the accused is said to have left US$1 on the bed and went out.
On the second count, it was further heard that sometime in 2023, when the victim was alone at home sleeping, she felt someone opening her blanket.
She thought it was her younger sister, but it was the accused. He covered her mouth, saying it was him and raped her.
It was heard that the victim did not cry since her mouth was covered, and the accused threatened the victim after the act not to tell anyone.
On the third count, the accused is said to have called the complainant on the pretext of sending her to the shops and raped her in his bedroom.
It was heard that the accused continued to rape the complainant whenever her mother was not around.
The victim’s mother is said to have suspected that the victim was pregnant after noticing that her breasts were bulging out.
She brought a pregnancy test but failed to get the results. The victim’s mother then went on to ask their neighbour, a nurse, to examine the victim, who confirmed that she was three months pregnant.
After that, the victim disclosed to her mother that her stepfather had raped her on several occasions since 2022 and was responsible for the pregnancy.
The victim’s mother then asked their neighbour to make a police report on her behalf, leading to the arrest of the accused.
Throughout the trial, the accused denied ever sleeping with the complainant, saying he viewed the victim as his daughter.
He said the complainant fabricated the story due to pressure from her mother about who the pregnancy belonged to and because the victim was also bitter towards him for reprimanding her for her misconduct.
mbulelo smpofu
