Would-be rapist almost beaten to death

What was supposed to be an opportunity to display their power and humiliate a woman turned into a nightmare and a moment of shame for three men, with one of them ending up almost being beaten to death.

The incident happened on Friday around 17:00, next to a busy traffic light at Maniini, close to Acacia Park, and attracted many residents who were coming from work.

It is alleged that a schoolgirl, who was on her way home from school in Maniini, was waylaid by three men, who forced her into nearby bushes, where they tried to rape her. While they were dragging her to the bushes, the girl screamed at the top of her voice, which alerted passersby, who came to her rescue.

The three men then ran into the nearby bushes, with one of them hiding under a nearby bridge. After some time the man allegedly emerged from his hiding place, and that was when people who were still searching for them found him. He was subjected to instant justice by his captors and was hit with any object they could find. He was stoned and stripped of all his clothing by the angry mob, who wanted to kill him before the police arrived.

He was seriously injured and was only rescued by the police, who had to use rubber bullets to disperse the angry crowd. Rumour has it that the man is a former prisoner who served 15 years in prison and is out on parole.

Angry women shouted that he should be castrated, so that he could not rape again. The naked man was bleeding profusely and later taken to hospital.

"We are tired of these criminals. Our girls are always victims, and we are no longer safe when we go to work or are on our way from work. These crooks rob us of our belongings and we are helpless as women. Even the police are doing nothing to protect us," an angry woman said.

Thohoyandou police spokesperson Major Mashudu Malelo said they had opened a case of attempted rape. "At this stage, we cannot confirm whether the man is an ex-prisoner out on parole. This will form part of our investigation, and the suspect we have is in hospital under police guard," he said. 

Date:06 March 2015

By: Elmon Tshikhudo

Elmon Tshikhudo started off as a photographer. He developed an interest in writing and started submitting articles to local as well as national publications. He became part of the Limpopo Mirror family in 2005 and was a permanent part of the news team until 2019.

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