LIMPOPO – The provincial police commissioner Lieutenant General Thembi Hadebe has strongly condemned the rape of an elderly woman (101) in the Zaaiplaas policing area in the Sekhukhune district on July 27.
A 27-year-old man, who resides in the same neighbourhood has since been arrested in connection with the crime and appeared before the Zaaiplaas Periodical Court last Monday (July 29) on charges of house breaking and rape.
According to police spokesperson Colonel Malesela Ledwaba, the victim was asleep when she was awakened by the suspect who tried to strangle her before he raped her.
“The suspect, who broke a window to gain entry, fled the scene after the incident which took place at the Zaaiplaas new stands in the early morning,” his statement read.
Ledwaba said the police were notified and a manhunt ensued.
“The suspect was identified and arrested at his home shortly after the incident. He was remanded in custody until August 8 for a possible bail application,” Ledwaba said.
Hadebe described the incident as a despicable act of violence against a vulnerable member of the community.
“This act is met with the full force of our commitment to justice. The rape of an elderly woman is not just a crime against an individual but a deeply disturbing assault on our society’s values and sense of safety,” Hadebe concluded.
