Bethal Magistrate’s Court postpones father’s rape case
The case of a father who allegedly raped his 13-year-old daughter in Bethal was postponed pending further investigation.
BETHAL – A 42-year-old Bethal man who allegedly raped his 13-year-old daughter appeared in the Bethal Magistrate’s Court on May 28 on charges of rape.
The court postponed the matter pending further investigation and DNA results. In his previous appearance on April 29, the man applied for legal aid, and the matter was postponed.
His arrest came after the investigating team, comprising Sergeants Mzwandile Nkambule and Bheki Maphanga and Constable Esther Malaza from the Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences (FCS) Unit in Secunda, received a rape case reported and registered with the Bethal SAPS.
The victim had stayed with her father and brother since January 2023, and the rape allegedly happened in September while the victim was asleep in her room.
Tests done in January confirmed the girl was pregnant. The father allegedly threatened to kill her should she tell anyone about the pregnancy.
The girl’s stepmother asked her about the pregnancy, and she told the stepmom everything.
The girl and her stepmother went to KwaZulu-Natal to personally inform the girl’s biological mother about her condition.
The two women and the girl returned to Bethal and reported the incident to the police.
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