A teen who was allegedly raped at gunpoint for two hours was sent away by police who said there was no van to take her to hospital. The girl, 19, was raped in the presence of her boyfriend by two men armed with a knife and pistol near Duncan Village at the side of the Mdantsane access road.
The victim went straight to the police station on October 1 soon after 9pm. The girl was preparing to write her final matric exams.
Sexual offences detectives were angry about the the way their charge office colleagues handled the case.
One detective said: “These charge office officers are costing us convictions because DNA evidence is not collected on time.” The girl said she was walking home in the company of her boyfriend when two men accosted them, pointed at them with weapons and began searching them.
“They took my boyfriend’s phone and ordered us into the bush. The men undressed my boyfriend and told him to lie on the grass. They then raped me,” said the girl who cannot be named because she is a victim of a sex crime.
After the men had fled, the Grade 12 pupil said she went straight to the Duncan Village police station to report the matter.
“There were five police officers. After I told them what happened they told me to go home and come back in the morning,” said the girl.
She said the cops told her not to wash her body.
The girl returned to the police station the following morning.
“I waited until noon in the station. Suddenly two officers arrived and took me to Cecilia Makiwane Hospital. The doctor who examined me asked me why I had not come as soon as possible,” the girl said.
When she walked out the hospital premises she found the van that had brought her there, it was gone.
“I waited until I could not wait any more. I took a taxi home,” said the girl.
Police spokesman Lieutenant-Colonel Mtati Tana confirmed that a rape case had been, saying it was not police policy to turn victims of sexual crimes away when they reported cases.
“Duncan Village police management are investigating the allegations that the woman was told to come back the following day, and departmental steps will be implemented if any member is guilty of misconduct,” Tana said.
Masimanyane women’s support centre director Lesley-Ann Foster, said police had no right to turn the victim away.
“It is travesty of justice. A rape victim is supposed to be treated with a high level of care.
“Police are supposed to transport the victim to hospital straight away with a rape kit which is only available at the police station.”
Police must also ensure that the victim receives counselling so that the trauma is contained,” Foster said.
She said as long as there was no proper training and accountability among the police, such incidents would continue. — zwangam@dispatch.co.za
Rape complainant let down by DV cops
The victim went straight to the police station on October 1 soon after 9pm. The girl was preparing to write her final matric exams.
Sexual offences detectives were angry about the the way their charge office colleagues handled the case.
One detective said: “These charge office officers are costing us convictions because DNA evidence is not collected on time.” The girl said she was walking home in the company of her boyfriend when two men accosted them, pointed at them with weapons and began searching them.
“They took my boyfriend’s phone and ordered us into the bush. The men undressed my boyfriend and told him to lie on the grass. They then raped me,” said the girl who cannot be named because she is a victim of a sex crime.
After the men had fled, the Grade 12 pupil said she went straight to the Duncan Village police station to report the matter.
“There were five police officers. After I told them what happened they told me to go home and come back in the morning,” said the girl.
She said the cops told her not to wash her body.
The girl returned to the police station the following morning.
“I waited until noon in the station. Suddenly two officers arrived and took me to Cecilia Makiwane Hospital. The doctor who examined me asked me why I had not come as soon as possible,” the girl said.
When she walked out the hospital premises she found the van that had brought her there, it was gone.
“I waited until I could not wait any more. I took a taxi home,” said the girl.
Police spokesman Lieutenant-Colonel Mtati Tana confirmed that a rape case had been, saying it was not police policy to turn victims of sexual crimes away when they reported cases.
“Duncan Village police management are investigating the allegations that the woman was told to come back the following day, and departmental steps will be implemented if any member is guilty of misconduct,” Tana said.
Masimanyane women’s support centre director Lesley-Ann Foster, said police had no right to turn the victim away.
“It is travesty of justice. A rape victim is supposed to be treated with a high level of care.
“Police are supposed to transport the victim to hospital straight away with a rape kit which is only available at the police station.”
Police must also ensure that the victim receives counselling so that the trauma is contained,” Foster said.
She said as long as there was no proper training and accountability among the police, such incidents would continue. — zwangam@dispatch.co.za
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