According to the Ikageng SAPS spokesperson, Const. Kelebogile Trom, the male suspects are aged between sixteen and nineteen.

The Herald reported last Thursday that the woman was dragged from her yard at about 23:00 on 1 April while she was speaking on her cell phone. At that time, she was allegedly stabbed in the back, struck on the head with a rock and kicked in the mouth before being raped. ‘Two of the three men raped her and ran away,’ Trom said.

Thabiso Mogapi wa Tsotetsi, the chairperson of Action For Social Justice International, says the next court date for the bail hearing for the 19-year-old suspect is 25 April. ‘The two minor suspects were released and placed under parental custody,’ he said.

Mogapi wa Tsotetsi, also a deputy provincial chairperson for the LGBTI NW task team also gave an update on the cases involving LGBTI (lesbian women, gay men, bisexual, transgender, and intersex) members that are still pending.

He says the murder case of Bobby Motlatla has been outstanding for some time. ‘On 10 November 2015, Bobby, a 35-year-old LGBTI music student at NWU Potchefstroom was stabbed multiple times in his back and chest with a sharp object. His naked body was found in his bedroom,’ said Mogapi wa Tsotetsi.

He added that Lesley Makousa’s murder case will be heard in the high court between 11 and 17 August this year. The Herald reported that Lesley’s lifeless body was dumped in desolate bushes in Promosa after being strangled, presumably with a shoelace that was found near the body. Lesley was a Gr. 10 learner at Promosa Secondary School. A passer-by made the discovery on the morning of Saturday 6 August.

‘The rape case of the 22-year-old lesbian from Ventersdorp is still outstanding and no other information, not even the date of the next court appearance, has been communicated thus far,’ said Mogapi wa Tsotetsi.