Woman gang-raped on way home from party
Police urge people planning to attend the various parties over the holidays and festive season to ensure they arrange safe transport home. This call follows the gang-rape of a woman after a social event last Saturday.
MZINTI – An evening of great music ended in horror when a young woman was gang-raped on her way home from Ebukhosini Resort on November 3.
Capt Magonseni Nkosi reported that the 23-year-old had been attending an event featuring local and national artists and celebrities at the nearby resort and had walked home later that night. She was waylaid and dragged into the bush, where she was raped by five suspects.
The case was reported at Tonga SAPS and is currently under investigation.
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Nkosi stated that there are many social and entertainment events on the calendar over the next two months, over Christmas and New Year, and that women especially should arrange for transport to take them home.
“During the day it’s not such a big problem, but at night and the early hours of the morning, criminals may target people in secluded areas,” he said.
The captain and his colleagues also came across several young teenagers heading home that night. When they offered to take the girls home to ensure their safety, the teens refused and said that they had snuck out. Many live with their grandmothers.
Nkosi called on parents and guardians to keep a close eye on their children and to be aware of their whereabouts. “Parents and relatives who look after children need to take responsibility for them. Some of the children sneak out at night and hang out at dangerous places and get drawn into substance abuse,” he said.
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Young mothers who leave their babies unattended or with people who are not able to properly care for them and go out to party are also a problem. Nkosi urged mothers to ensure responsible people take care of their children when they are unable to.
On a different note, he repeated his call for people to mark their possessions. Police recover stolen goods and then struggle to return them to the rightful owners, as they cannot prove the property is theirs. He advised people to specially mark their valuables or ensure they keep serial numbers, receipts or proof of purchase to show to police when identifying stolen property.
READ: Criminals hit several homes in Mzinti and Malalane in October
