Accused of at least five rapes in two-year reign of terror
Francistown police are on the lookout for a man believed to be behind a spate of rapes in the second city’s Area A location.
Cops believe the unknown man, dubbed the ‘Area A rapist’, is responsible for at least five rapes in the area, with his reign of terror dating back to 2018.
Speaking to The Voice this week, Francistown Central Police Station Commander, Lebalang Maniki revealed the suspected serial rapist follows a similar pattern when he carries out his attacks.
“He targets young women staying in servant quarters in Area A. He normally strikes in the early hours of the morning and we believe he stalks his victims before he attacks,” explained the top cop, adding the suspect leaves around three months between each rape.
Highlighting the perpetrator’s preferred modus operandi, Maniki said, “The person breaks into the houses, where he then rapes his victims. He is normally armed with a knife and, according to the victims, he always speaks English. We think this is to confuse the victims so that they cannot tell his nationality.”
According to the police boss, after raping his victims, the man then makes away with any phones and laptops on the premises.
Asked what the boys in blue are doing to catch the suspect, Maniki said, “We do our best to sensitise the public about him and we conduct regular patrols in the area.”
The Station Commander further added that of the five rape cases registered in his policing area for the months of April, May and June, one has been attributed to the ‘Area A rapist’.
A concerned Maniki noted the five registered rapes was a substantial increase from the two recorded in the corresponding three-month period in 2019.
In other sexual offences, he revealed they registered five cases of defilement whereas last year they did not record a single one between April and June.
However, in terms of overall crime, Maniki stated they have noted a significant reduction, which he attributed to increased police and soldiers patrols.