A Soshanguve woman has been arrested for laying a false rape claim against her boyfriend.
Police spokesperson Constable Zanele Mtsweni said the 24-year-old woman from block UU Soshanguve came to the police on Thursday and alleged that her boyfriend had raped her the previous night.
“The police opened a case against her boyfriend and arranged for her to receive a medical examination from the clinic as per procedure,” said Mtsweni.
When the assigned police detective conducted further investigation, it came to light that she had lied.
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“She refused to be examined by a professional nurse, and when questioned she revealed that she had blatantly lied under oath due to an argument she had had with her boyfriend and that the sexual encounter was consensual,” said Mtsweni.
The woman told police she wished to withdraw her statement.
“This, however, has been noted by the SAPS under serious light, leading to a case of perjury being opened against her,” Mtsweni said.
“Police cannot emphasise enough the importance of truthful information to be given under oath and will bring anyone who fails to do so to justice.”
“The penalty for perjury can either be a fine or minimum imprisonment of one year to a maximum of ten years depending if the person can be found guilty of other charges added onto the perjury charge,” she said.
If found guilty, the woman could be sentenced for perjury and for perverting the course of justice, police added.
Mtsweni said this was the first case of this nature where a woman had tried to open a false rape case.
“Such cases bring a real risk that a woman who has been raped or sexually assaulted may not complain to the police for fear of not being believed.”
She said in previous cases police had found common discrepancies which strengthened their suspicions that the suspects had fabricated cases.
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The woman was expected to appear in court soon.
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