KwaZulu-Natal police are on the hunt for a fugitive alleged sex predator who stands accused of raping six children from homes in the same street north of Durban.
Police spokesperson Lieutenant-Colonel Thulani Zwane confirmed that a criminal inquiry had been registered after complaints on Tuesday.
“We can confirm six children came forward to report the allegations at Verulam. An inquiry has been registered for further investigation‚” he said.
Zwane confirmed that the victims were aged between five and six.
Some of the victims were allegedly raped repeatedly over a period spanning several years.
The man is now on the run as the children‚ through medical examinations and interviews with police and social workers‚ reveal the extent of his alleged crimes.
A source close to the family of an alleged victim‚ who spoke on condition of anonymity and in order to protect the identity of the child‚ said that after one child revealed that she had been raped‚ news travelled around the neighbourhood and other victims came forward.
“What the children said is that this man would offer them sweets to get them inside his room and once inside he would rape them at knifepoint. He would turn the radio up to mask any noise they made‚” he said.
“They said that once he was done he would threaten the children with death if they said anything about the attack.”
Child rights and protection consultant Joan van Niekerk said that children in an impoverished setting were particularly vulnerable.
“This area is at the lower end of the economic spectrum and one of the big problems is that the adults go to work and there is very little minding for children in the afternoon and in school holidays. Even less when children are too young to attend school‚” she said.
“Given the limited care for children in the community like this it is not uncommon for an offender to prey on many children from a single family or many children from a small area.”
She said that until the alleged perpetrator was caught‚ it would be unclear whether or not he was a paedophile.
“He may be in a relationship where he can’t express his sexuality and for him children become easy prey.”
“This person is obviously high risk and he is clearly quite skilled in getting children to do his bidding. If he is ever caught‚ this is a person who should be removed from the community.”
- TimesLIVE
Source: Tiso Black Star Group Digital.
Police hunt for alleged child sex predator in KZN
Police spokesperson Lieutenant-Colonel Thulani Zwane confirmed that a criminal inquiry had been registered after complaints on Tuesday.
“We can confirm six children came forward to report the allegations at Verulam. An inquiry has been registered for further investigation‚” he said.
Zwane confirmed that the victims were aged between five and six.
Some of the victims were allegedly raped repeatedly over a period spanning several years.
The man is now on the run as the children‚ through medical examinations and interviews with police and social workers‚ reveal the extent of his alleged crimes.
A source close to the family of an alleged victim‚ who spoke on condition of anonymity and in order to protect the identity of the child‚ said that after one child revealed that she had been raped‚ news travelled around the neighbourhood and other victims came forward.
“What the children said is that this man would offer them sweets to get them inside his room and once inside he would rape them at knifepoint. He would turn the radio up to mask any noise they made‚” he said.
“They said that once he was done he would threaten the children with death if they said anything about the attack.”
Child rights and protection consultant Joan van Niekerk said that children in an impoverished setting were particularly vulnerable.
“This area is at the lower end of the economic spectrum and one of the big problems is that the adults go to work and there is very little minding for children in the afternoon and in school holidays. Even less when children are too young to attend school‚” she said.
“Given the limited care for children in the community like this it is not uncommon for an offender to prey on many children from a single family or many children from a small area.”
She said that until the alleged perpetrator was caught‚ it would be unclear whether or not he was a paedophile.
“He may be in a relationship where he can’t express his sexuality and for him children become easy prey.”
“This person is obviously high risk and he is clearly quite skilled in getting children to do his bidding. If he is ever caught‚ this is a person who should be removed from the community.”
- TimesLIVE
Source: Tiso Black Star Group Digital.
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