A 72-year-old grandmother has expressed deep feelings of betrayal after a local hairdresser, whom the family supported for years, allegedly raped her 22-year-old granddaughter, who has cognitive limitations, on two separate occasions.

The accused, who cannot be named to protect the victim’s identity, appeared briefly in the Alexandra Magistrates’ Court on May 12. He faced charges of rape at his salon in May and June last year. The case, delayed several times as the accused sought state-funded legal representation, has been postponed to June 9 for trial. He has remained in custody since bail was denied in 2025.

Read more: Family faces more trauma as rape trial of trusted hairdresser is delayed

The family only learned of the incidents in August last year, two months after the second alleged assault. The grandmother described how the hairdresser exploited her granddaughter’s vulnerabilities and allegedly silenced her with threats.

“He took advantage of her, saying that if she said a word about the incident, he would assault her,” she said.

She recounted regularly sending her granddaughter to the salon with money, believing she was helping a known local business owner. “My child used to sit with him. When she goes to the salon, I would give her money and tell her to go and do her hair.”

The grandmother said the betrayal had caused ongoing trauma for the victim and the family. “It is always on her mind. From time to time, she speaks about it. It really hurt her. She is not okay.”
Community members have rallied in support. ActionSA Ward 75 branch chairperson Advice Chuma, who has stood by the family since last year, expressed disappointment at the latest postponement.

“It was a sad day because we expected that, since last year, when this matter started, it had never been set for trial,” Chuma said. “Today, we were hoping that the trial would start, but unfortunately, we have to come back again on June 9. You can imagine the stress that the family has because of this prolonged matter.”

Also read: Alex woman battles rape trauma

Chuma called for unity across community structures. “Enough is enough, we must come together as all the sectors of community, including faith-based organisations, the patrollers, the Community Policing Forum and every organisation that exists here. We are tired of crime.”

He clarified that the call was not intended to criticise the local police station but to strengthen collaboration.

“This is to seriously get our concerns across to say we are really concerned. The least we can do is highlight these issues and also try to understand some of the challenges the police have to see how best we can escalate it so that our police can be capacitated to deal with the issues of crime.”

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