An apparent Good Samaritan turned out to be a Devil in disguise, allegedly raping a stranded traveller after offering the lady and her young daughter accommodation for the night.
Israel Ncube, a Zimbabwean bus-loader based in Francistown, is said to have approached the woman, 46, and her 13-year-old child at the bus rank at around 8pm on Thursday evening.
The pair had come to Ghetto for a day of shopping but unfortunately missed the last bus back home to Zimbabwe.
Spotting their plight, the 32-year-old suspect is said to have told his home-girls they could sleep at his rented house in Kgaphamadi, an offer they gratefully accepted.
“They reported that when they got to the house, the accused person informed them he will sleep elsewhere and left them in his house. They said in the wee hours of Friday around 0100 hours, the accused arrived and told the woman he wants to have sex with her, and she refused. They then left his house and walked to the bus rank; as they were walking in the dark, they saw the accused approaching from behind and the daughter threw a stone at him. He chased the girl and stabbed her with a knife on her hand,” Tatitown Assistant Superintendent, Meshack Mosika told The Voice.
According to the top cop, the mum instructed her daughter to run for help.
“As she ran away, the accused person caught the mother and raped her in Tati River,” revealed Mosika, adding the suspect then returned home.
The matter was reported to the police the following morning, who managed to locate and arrest Ncube.
After a weekend in the police cells, Ncube was arraigned before Francistown Magistrates Court on Monday, where he was hit with three charges: rape, unlawful wounding and entering Botswana illegally.
Securing his remand, State Prosecutor, Koziba Nthanga noted Ncube not a suitable candidate for bail as he was likely to flee back to Zim if freed.
“The accused person has been charged with entering the country illegally which means he does not have the travelling documents so granting him bail he might abscond. The swabs have been taken from the victim, so we plead that blood be extracted from the accused person for forensic analysis,” added Prosecutor Nthanga.
Given the chance to address court, Ncube took a deep breath before nervously revealing his sister recently passed away and so he was taking care of both her and his own children.
“I plead that I be allowed to go where I was staying to pack my things and give them to someone to keep them for me,” requested the accused in a shaky voice.
Ncube was informed the police will assist him with this, before he was led away to prison, where he will remain until 16 September, when he returns to court for status update.
“He’s a wolf in sheep’s clothing,” muttered an angry on-looker, as the shackled suspect left court.
