Case of Verulam ‘rapist’, accused of keeping child as sex slave, postponed

The case against the Verulam man accused of raping his stepdaughter after keeping her captive for nearly five years has been postponed.

The 43-year-old man was arrested after a mob assaulted him for allegedly molesting his 10-year-old stepdaughter in the KwaZulu-Natal town.

The accused appeared in the Verulam Magistrates’ Court on Monday for a bail hearing.

His matter was postponed to July 2.

The man, who cannot be named to protect the identity of the 10-year-old child, is being charged with rape, sexual grooming, exposure of a child to pornography and sexual assault.

The alleged rape began after the 10-year-old’s mother died.

He appeared in the Verulam court limping from his injuries after he was assaulted by the mob two weeks ago.

Angry community members outside the Verulam Family Court called for a man arrested for raping his stepdaughter since the age of 5 to be released to them. Picture: Supplied by Reaction Unit South Africa

Security firm Reaction Unit South Africa’s (Rusa) officers spearheaded the arrest after being alerted to the situation by concerned neighbours.

The windows of the room in which the 10-year-old was held captive were blocked out with newspaper, and the man allegedly allowed the child limited access to the outside world and would not let her see her family.

The 10-year-old was taken to a place of safety.