Fake employer arrested for rape

A 27-year-old woman allegedly went to a supposed company in Newcastle last Wednesday and left her CV in her search for a job, police said.

Later on the same day, she received a call from a person who claimed to be working for a power station in Newcastle and was instructed to come and rectify discrepancies in her CV, police added.

The suspect allegedly asked the victim to meet him at Theku Plaza, and while at the back of the garage, he dragged her to the veld at Albert Wessels, where he tied her up, raped and robbed her of her shoes, cellphone and cash.

Charges of rape and robbery were then opened for further investigation at Newcastle Police Station, and the case was transferred to Newcastle FCS.

The following day, the investigating officer received information that the victim’s sister, who had also submitted a CV at “Workforce”, received a call from someone offering her a job, police said.

The information was verified, and a sting operation was set up.

The victim’s sister met with the suspect and was lured to the veld by the suspect, and the members pounced and arrested him as he was trying to flee, Rising Sun Chatsworth reported.

Police reportedly proceeded to the suspect’s house in Madadeni, where his room was searched and a number of CVs and two sim cards were recovered. The victim’s cellphone was also recovered.

The suspect appeared in the Newcastle Magistrates’ Court today.

KwaZulu-Natal provincial commissioner Lieutenant-General Mmamonnye Ngobeni praised the Newcastle FCS Unit for the swift arrest.

In a separate incident, two balaclava-clad men allegedly took turns raping a 15-year-old girl in the Eastbank Cemetery, near Jukskei Park, in Alexandra, Johannesburg, last month.

Alexandra police spokesperson Warrant Officer Moses Maphakela said the victim had been walking along 20th Avenue, close to the cemetery, with another girl and a boy at 9pm when they were approached by the two men.

The men were said to have produced a firearm and ordered the three to come with them to a secluded area of the cemetery, where one of the girls was raped.

No arrests had been made.

– Caxton News Service