Man accused of raping students to plead guilty on all charges

A MAN accused of raping two Nelson Mandela University (NMU) students on Monday night said he would plead guilty to the charges.

The 29-year-old appeared briefly in a packed Port Elizabeth Magistrate’s Court yesterday, where he also revealed he had a previous conviction for robbery with aggravating circumstances.

He was on parole at the time of the latest attack.

While it is not clear when he was released from prison, his parole was due to expire in 2019.

It is alleged he scaled the university’s perimeter fence and entered the computer laboratory, where he stole equipment and raped two female students, aged 25 and 30.

One of the women managed to call for help via a garbled Facebook alert.

CCTV pictures of the suspect were then circulated via social media, leading to his swift arrest on Wednesday.

Wearing a green hooded tracksuit top, the man appeared confident yesterday as he took to the dock.

Addressing the court clearly, he said he required Legal Aid South Africa representation.

At times, as his rights were explained to him, he was asked if he was still listening to the magistrate as his attention drifted and he began looking around and fidgeting in the dock.

He opted to abandon his bid for bail and said he intended to plead guilty to the provisional charges, which include two counts of rape and one of robbery.

He said he had no pending cases or warrants for his arrest.

A small student contingency protested outside the court building, while others packed the court gallery alongside members of the media.

Journalists from The Herald were aggressively asked to leave by the students, who accused the paper of being racist.

The case against the man was postponed to Monday when a date for a formal plea will be arranged. He cannot be named until then.

Meanwhile a motorist who opened fire among protestors at the university on Wednesday was released on bail of R1 000 after appearing in the same court on Thursday.

Mthunzi Williams, 27, faces charges of attempted murder, discharging of a firearm and pointing of a firearm.

The case against Williams was postponed to November 23 for further investigation.

The charges were withdrawn against the three men who were with him. — DDC