Initiation school ‘rapists’ trial postponed to July

Johan Mlombo and Sister Mapalase Khoza pleaded not guilty to the 49 charges against them, Lowvelder reported.

Mlombo and Khoza were charged in Mbombela’s Circuit High Court on March 2 this year. After pleading innocent, they were presented with the state’s evidence.

The girls had been examined at the Themba Hospital after being rescued from the school. Nurse Johnson Nkosi testified about the girls’ medical condition after their rescue.

During the accused’s court appearance in March, two witnesses aged 20 and 12 testified via closed-circuit television. According to the 20-year-old, she was assaulted by Khoza and raped by Mlombo.

“Even if we wanted to leave, we could not because we were told that we would go insane if we left. We did not want to go mad,” she testified.

The testimony of a 12-year-old, who clutched a teddy bear as she recounted what happened to her at the age of nine, shocked the gallery.

A third witness was 15 years old when she attended the initiation school. She was cross-examined about the day the police came to free the 21 girls from the initiation school. “The police were summoned to come and get us,” she said. Defence advocate Madala Mulaudzi argued the police were called because the girls’ parents did not pay the initiation school fee in full.

“This is not true,” the witness stated. “The police were called because an act was contravened.”

The case against Mlombo and Khoza was postponed to July 14 and 15. On those dates, Mlombo and Khoza’s defence witnesses are expected to be called to corroborate their version of events.

– Caxton News Service