In a shocking and abhorrent incident, an 18-year-old man from Chegutu has been arraigned before the Chegutu Magistrates’ Court on rape charges for allegedly ƨǝxuɑlly assaulting his 9-year-old niece.
According to the National Prosecuting Authority of Zimbabwe, the incident occurred on April 1, 2024, when the victim was at home with the accused and two of her younger siblings. The accused allegedly instructed the younger siblings to go to the kitchen and roast some groundnuts, leaving him alone with the 9-year-old complainant.
Once the other children had left the room, he grabbed the complainant’s hand and pushed her into her grandmother’s bedroom where he ordered her to lie down facing upwards but she resisted. He forced her down and removed her pantie, removed his white shorts and raped her once.
When he heard the complainant’s father speaking outside, he hid behind the door and ordered the complainant to lie that there was no one else in the house. The complainant’s father saw the accused hiding behind the door and asked her why she had lied, she revealed that she was raped by the accused person. A police report was made leading to the arrest of the accused person.
The accused has been remanded in custody until June 11, 2024, as the case proceeds through the judicial system. This heinous crime against a vulnerable child by a family member underscores the urgent need for stronger child protection measures and harsher penalties for such egregious acts of ƨǝxuɑl abuse.
