Wednesday, March 23, 2016

Crimes of the South African Police Service

National 25.6.2015 11:08 am
Incest’ cop found guilty of rape
Zinhle Khumalo
The cop on incest trial was on Thursday found guilty of the charges he had committed between 2005 and 2006.
Sitting in the high court in Palm Ridge, acting Judge Vorster said he found that the evidence given by the accused was “fabricated”. “I found the accused’s version not true,” said Vorster .
The accused was facing five counts of indecent assault and rape. He had previously pleaded not guilty to the charges. Asked by prosecutor Jacob Molwantwa if he was remorseful of his actions,  the accused replied “for the alleged offences yes.”
The police officer accused of raping his stepdaughter disputed his ex-wife’s claim she found him exposing his genitals to the six-year-old daughter.
The case was heard in the Palm Ridge High Court. Defence counsel Johan Prestorius said the mother’s version that she had seen the genitals being exposed to the daughter could not be trusted. Prestorius referred to the mother’s earlier testimony when she claimed her daughter’s mouth was open at the time the accused was on his knees when he asked the then grade one pupil to give his private part a “kiss goodnight”.
The accused however said the step-daughter was asleep at the time and his action was a “drunken urination miscalculation”.
Prestorius questioned the validity of the mother’s story, asking how the incident could have occurred if the accused knew the mother of the child could enter the room anytime as she was apparently in the bathroom. “This should at least prove beyond reasonable doubt something different could have happened that day,” said Prestorius.
Prosecutor Jacob Molwantwa argued there was no reason for the daughter to lie, and added it should also not be expected of her to be consistent in her testimony as she “was very young at that stage.”
Molwantwa said the contradictions should be “regarded as qualifying the truth”. He said consistency would prove the matter brought forward was not true and could have been structured.
The sexual molestation case was revealed when the stepdaughter was 11 years old and she only began testifying at the age of 17.
The accused is facing six counts of assault and rape. Molwantwa said there was sufficient evidence implicating the accused. “He wanted the court to believe that he was drunk that night…he was able to drive nine km away,” said Molwantwa.
“How could he have lost his sense of direction at that crucial stage after he had entered the house,” Molwantwa questioned.
The accused has a child with his cousin. -zinhlek@citizen.co.za