Genitalia collector appears in court
Appeal goes out to victims to come forward
NONE of the women allegedly mutilated by Peter Frederiksen, the Bloemfontein man who was found with 21 pieces of female genitalia in his freezer, has come forward yet, raising fears that they might be dead.
Frederiksen, 63, a Danish national, was arrested last week in Bloemfontein after police made the gruesome discovery, which included neatly packaged, labelled and documented female genitalia and a large collection of photographs of female genitals, some belonging to a girl possibly as young as seven.
He allegedly lured women, mostly from Lesotho, to his home before sedating them and performing “female circumcisions” on them, keeping the severed parts as “trophies.”
At his house in Eden Glen, Langenhoven Park, police also confiscated an arsenal of surgical equipment and anaesthetic, allegedly used during the illegal operations.
Frederiksen made a brief appearance in the Bloemfontein Magistrate’s Court via Audio Visual Recording (AVR) yesterday, where his case was remanded to next week, when he is expected to apply for bail.
He faces charges relating to assault with the intent to do grievous bodily harm, possession and manufacturing of child pornography, the possession of human tissue and the contravention of the Medicine Act.
Meanwhile, members of the ANC Women’s League (ANCWL) gathered outside the courtroom and called on the court to deny Frederiksen bail.
The ANCWL further raised concern about the whereabouts of the victims.
It is still unclear at this stage whether the victims were still alive when the surgeries were performed.
The ANCWL yesterday also called for Frederiksen’s gun shop in Bloemfontein, Impala Arms, to be shut down.
Frederiksen’s wife was yesterday seen at Impala Arms, gathering bags with female and children’s clothes with the investigating officer, Lynda Steyn.
Steyn said that while the wife was fearing for her life, she would not be taken to a safe house, as this would prevent her from seeing her two children.
Frederiksen’s wife reportedly alerted police to the collection of female genitalia stored in the freezer, after he drugged and also mutilated her private parts.
He has since allegedly placed all blame on her, saying she was the one who performed the operations.
Steyn also confirmed that no victims had by yesterday come forward, despite various calls for any woman who might have fallen prey to contact the police.
Police have requested any woman who believes she may have been operated on by Frederiksen to urgently contact Sergeant Lebo Bosman at 082 527 6309.