Court refuses to grant bail to man accused of rape

The Heidelberg Magistrate’s Court on Friday denied bail for 38-year-old Thabiso Amos, who is facing charges on three counts of rape.

Speaking to The Citizen, National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) regional spokesperson Lumka Mahanjana said: “In court, through his legal representative, Amos asked the court to grant him bail because he is a breadwinner and that he has a painful kidney.”

Man accused of rape denied bail

The state opposed the application, saying the accused committed a serious offence and is well known to the complainant.

“Magistrate Gerhard Strydom agreed with the state that there is no proof that the accused has a kidney problem and that if he does have a kidney problem, he can receive medical attention while in custody.

“The accused failed to convince the court that exceptional circumstances exist which in the interest of justice warrant his release on bail,” said Mahanjana.

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The case is rescheduled to 20 August 2024 to allow further investigations.

Arrest of Amos

The accused’s arrest came after a 28-year-old woman reported him to the police on 4 July.

The complainant was reportedly at her home in Ratanda, Heidelberg, on 3 July around 9pm when she heard a knock at her door.

Mahanjana said the accused, who was armed, was at the door. He allegedly took her to an abandoned house nearby and told her to perform oral sex on him and then raped her.

“After the rape, he took her to his place of residence in the same area where he raped her again. At around 11pm, the accused accompanied her home.”

The accused was arrested at his place of residence on 9 July 2024 and is remanded in custody.

28-year-old jailed for rape committed 27 years ago

In another case in the Eastern Cape, 58–year–old Xolani Qanqane was put behind bars after raping a minor 27 years ago.

The Zwelitsha Regional Court sentenced Qanqane to 11 years’ imprisonment. The case was opened in 2021, and the incident happened in 1997.

NPA regional spokesperson Luxolo Tyali told The Citizen the now 41-year-old woman reported the incident after she came across a taxi with numbers written on it, and realized the driver was the accused. The accused was a photographer when the incident occurred.

Tyali added that the senior public prosecutor, Brenan Sam, had to find evidence to corroborate the victim’s version after more than 24 years.

“With the assistance of the court preparation officer Phelisa Matinise, the highly emotional victim was able to give accurate evidence,” Tyali said.

ALSO READ: SA man sentenced for raping a child 27 years ago