Cop charged in girls’ assault

Schoolgirls tell of night of terror after lift to hospital

ANIGHT of hell for two schoolgirls from the coastal hamlet of Hamburg culminated in their opening a rape and a sexual assault case against the police officer they had asked for help.

One of the young women had taken ill and the pair, who live alone in the village, had asked the police sergeant for a lift to the nearest hospital on Tuesday after being unable to raise an ambulance.

When a Daily Dispatch team visited the village on Friday they met furious members of the small community, including community leader Mzikayise Makubalo, as well as a friend of one of the girls, Sisanda Magodla, and the friend’s stepmother Pumla Mapuma.

Magodla and Mapuma were first to learn of the girls’ ordeal. The girls – one 17 and the other 21 – cannot be named because of the nature of the complaint.

Makubalo said the older girl had been sick for a few days and had made several unsuccessful attempts to find transport from the village to the nearest hospital, 14km away on a rough dirt road.

Magodla said in desperation the younger girl, who had seen her talking to the sergeant, asked if they could get a lift from the police officer.

The sergeant reportedly agreed to take the girls to the hospital in his double-cab bakkie.

Upon arrival at the hospital the 21year-old was told she would likely have to be admitted for the night.

Magodla said the teen told her the officer took her back to Hamburg – but on the way made a number of attempts to touch her sexually. She said it was only when she jumped out of the car that he agreed he would stop his advances and take her home.

Soon after he had dropped the younger girl off at home at about 11pm, the 21-year-old called the officer, telling him she could be picked up from hospital as she was no longer being admitted, the friend said.

Mapuma said when the teen arrived home she went straight to the outside bathroom at the Mapumas, where she could be heard crying.

Later she returned to her house. According to Magodla, and confirmed to the Dispatch by the older girl, since she was sick she was given medication at the hospital.

“It made her sleepy and she dozed off in the car,” she said. When she woke she realised they had passed the usual turn-off to her home.

She said she was driven to the beach and raped.

The next morning the two girls approached Magodla and told her of their ordeal. She immediately told her father. After the girls recounted the story to him he took them to the police station to lay cases.

The Daily Dispatch has seen both dockets. One is for attempted rape and lists the time of the crime as 10.50pm. The other is for rape and has the time of the crime at 02.50am on Wednesday.

The Dispatch team spoke to one of the victims who confirmed they had opened the cases.

She is now in a place of safety after being advised the house they were staying in was no longer safe.

A relative of one girl said: “The girls are traumatised. They have changed completely and don’t want to talk to anyone. They don’t trust anyone from outside and they don’t feel safe anywhere.” The family member pleaded that the girls be left alone.

Moses Dlamini, national spokesman for the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid), said: “I can confirm that the Ipid is investigating allegations of rape and attempted rape.

“The suspect was arrested on May 23 after the victims reported their ordeal to Hamburg SAPS.

“The suspect appeared before the Peddie Magistrate’s Court. The matter was postponed to June 1 for a formal bail application. The accused remains in custody.”

● Captain Khaya Tonjeni, SAPS provincial spokesperson, confirmed that the former station commander of the same police station is accused of stabbing his wife to death just weeks before this incident.

“The suspect is an ex-police officer who resigned after he made his first appearance.

“[The] incident took place at about 5.30pm on Saturday May 5 at Ekuphumleni, Kenton-on-Sea. According to a witness the deceased and her husband had an argument.

“The suspect came at 9.30pm to Kenton police station to hand himself over,” said Tonjeni.