Dros rapist Nicholas Ninow pleads guilty to rape
He pleaded guilty to the charges of rape, kidnapping, defeating the ends of justice, and possession of an illegal substance but not to the charge of assault.
Nicholas Ninow appears in the North Gauteng High Court on the first day of his trial, 9 September 2019, Pretoria. Picture: Jacques Nelles
Nicholas Ninow, the 22-year-old accused of raping a seven-year-old girl in the bathroom of a Dros restaurant in Pretoria, has pleaded guilty to the four counts against him in the Gauteng High Court in Pretoria on Monday.
#DrosRape accused Nicolas Ninow has pleaded guilty on the four charges against him except the charge of assault.@keiitumetse pic.twitter.com/Nd1VRS0BwV
— Pretoria Rekord (@RekordNewspaper) September 9, 2019
Ninow has been charged with rape, assault, kidnapping, defeating the ends of justice and possession of an illegal substance.
He reportedly pleaded guilty to all counts, with the exception of the assault charge.
The kidnapping charge against him was withdrawn.
JUST IN: #DrosRapist Ninow has pleaded guilty to two acts of rape, being in possession of drugs and defeating the ends of Justice.
— Jacaranda News (@JacaNews) September 9, 2019
In March, the Pretoria Magistrate’s Court heard that the trial was expected to run from September 9 to 20.
The accused was arrested at the restaurant in September 2018, after he allegedly followed the seven-year-old child to a bathroom and raped her. A video, taken moments after the alleged incident, showed a man covered in blood, and angry patrons berating him.
Since his arrest, the accused has not applied for bail.
In February this year, Ninow was found fit to stand trial after spending a month in Weskoppies Psychiatric Hospital undergoing extensive evaluation.
He was evaluated by a team of four experts, including psychiatrists and a clinical psychologist, in line with a 2018 court order. The evaluation assessed the mental capacity of the accused and determined whether he could be held accountable.
Ninow was sent for observation after his lawyer told the court that there was a need to explore the mental state of his client at the time of the incident.
He said Ninow had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder in 2013 and had been using drugs since he was 14 years old. It was put on record that the accused had previously undergone rehabilitation for substance abuse.
“He also tried to commit suicide because of the severe depression of having bipolar,” the lawyer said at the time.
News24 previously revealed that the possession of an illegal substance in the Dros matter relates to a substance which was allegedly found in his possession at the time of his arrest.
It is alleged that the substance tested positive for the drug Cat and the charge sheet was changed to reflect this.
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