MOPANI – A 12-year-old boy briefly appeared in the Ritavi Magistrate's Court on Monday on a charge of rape. This follows an incident that took place at the Ritavi settlement last Friday afternoon at about 14:00, where the accused allegedly raped a six-month-old baby.

According to the spokesperson of the police in the Mopani area, Capt Moatshe Ngoepe, the baby's mother left her in the care of a seven-year-old girl when she went left home earlier that morning. According to the police statement, the accused arrived at the scene and asked about the whereabouts of the baby's mother.

When he was told that the mother was away, he allegedly started threatening the girl who was looking after the baby with death. That resulted in the girl running away, leaving the crying baby alone. The accused then allegedly raped the baby several times before leaving the place.

Realising that her baby had been molested, the mother traced the girl, who told her that she had been chased away by the accused. The woman then took the matter up with the police and the boy was arrested later that afternoon. He was not asked to plead.

The accused was released under parental care and the case was postponed to next Tuesday, September 16. In a statement that was released by the police early this week, they appealed to mothers to tighten security around their babies, since they are being regarded as soft targets by the rapists.

In a separate incident, the police arrested a 44-year-old man on Tuesday morning and charged him with rape. The incident took place at Nkowankowa settlement on Monday night. According to the police statement, the accused was sleeping with his 15-year-old stepdaughter in one house when the incident took place. The mother was away when the incident occurred. The statement indicates that during the night the accused left his room and went to the victim's room. He then threatened the girl with death if she told the story to anyone before raping her repeatedly.

The girl told the story to her mother when she came back, who in turn took the matter up with the police. The accused was arrested on Tuesday and he appeared in the Ritavi Magistrate's Court on Wednesday. He was not asked to plead and the case was postponed to a later date.