Girl in horrific attack recovering at home

A schoolgirl who last week survived a brutal rape in which she was stabbed, bludgeoned and buried alive has been discharged from hospital after a week in ICU.

She was discharged on Friday from Bhisho Hospital. According to her parents, the Grade 9 pupil, 16, is recovering at home near the King William’s Town village where she suffered the attack.

Yesterday her mother told the Daily Dispatch that the teen had been stabbed 25 times. She has tested negative for sexually transmitted diseases and pregnancy.

“We are glad that she was not infected but she is scheduled for more tests just to confirm. Her next appointment with the doctor is January 26,” the mother of seven told the Dispatch.

“The number of wounds suggest that he wanted to kill her but God said no.”

The mother, victim and the alleged perpetrator – who is known to the victim – cannot be named due to the sexual nature of the crime.

King William’s Town spokeswoman Captain Siphokazi Mawisa said the man appeared in the Zwelitsha Magistrate’s Court last week on rape and attempted murder charges. He was arrested on the day of the crime and is being held in custody. Mawisa said the case was postponed for December 21 for a formal bail application.

The mother said her daughter would undergo trauma counselling.

The teen was rushed to Grey Hospital in King William’s Town on Saturday December 2 with life-threatening injuries and was later transferred to Bhisho due to the severity of the wounds.

She had been found by passersby half-naked at a bottom of a bridge after she had apparently dug herself out of the shallow grave she had been buried in.

According to King William’s Town police, she was attacked while returning home from a party with friends at 2am on Saturday.