There are still ten months to go before the year ends but this article brings to eight the number of rapes that the Potchefstroom Herald has reported within the Ikageng community since January this year.
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Three of them were reported in last week’s Herald and, this week, there have been four rape cases, mostly affecting girls between the ages of eleven and eighteen.
Last Saturday, the Ikageng police arrested a 61-year-old man for allegedly raping an 11-year-old girl at about 08:45. According to SAPS spokesperson, Const. Kelebogile Trom, the child was raped when she went to the tuck-shop. The suspect grabbed her and took her to his place and raped her. He was interrupted by three women who came into the bedroom and took the girl home. The man was later arrested.
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In another incident, a 32-year-old was arrested for allegedly raping a 16-year-old girl at about 08:00 on Friday. Trom says the teen’s grandmother told the police that her granddaughter was dating a much older man who was forcing her to sleep with him. She alleged that he forced her to drink liquor with friends and then prostituted her to other older men. She said she feared that her granddaughter would be harmed if she does not accede to the man’s demands.
Another case involved a 36-year-old who was arrested for holding a mentally disabled 13-year-old girl hostage and allegedly raping her on 11 February and the following day.
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The final case took place on Tuesday when an 18-year-old was allegedly raped at knifepoint. She alleges that she was on her way back from school at about 15:15 and was crossing Witsandweg in Promosa. ‘She met an unknown man wearing a blue overall with reflective strips, a grey long-sleeved T-shirt and a yellow hat. He took her to a nearby bush where he raped her at knifepoint.
