Cape Town - The case case of the Brackenfell police officer accused of raping a young woman on a farm in Stellenbosch on the pretext of helping her has been postponed once again.
The officer, who was set to appear in the Blue Downs Magistrate’s Court on Thursday, will now be making his first appearance on Monday due to the court not having running water.
The Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid) announced the change of dates on Thursday, stating that they were not concerned by the postponement of the officer’s appearance.
Ipid spokesperson Grace Langa said: “We are not in a hurry, and we will let the law take its course.
“Situations such as this need for us to allow things to move at their own pace because we are not the only stakeholder in the matter, and the accused has rights protected by the Constitution that we cannot infringe on.”
The Brackenfell Community Policing Forum (CPF) says it was left shocked by the alleged sexual assault incident and even more so by the lack of victim support awarded to the victim by the community’s police.
Chairperson Werner Victor said: “It was with great shock that we learnt of the alleged rape of a victim of gender-based violence by an SAPS member. We are also concerned why the case of assault was not opened against the boyfriend of the victim when it was first reported, the correct procedures were not followed.
“We have had discussions with the management of Brackenfell SAPS and know that disciplinary actions were instituted against officers involved and that an investigation into what happened that night is under way. We will monitor the process closely,” Victor said.
Anti-GBV organisation Ilitha Labantu has also condemned the shocking alleged assault, saying that it was disturbed to learn that a member of the police service had perpetrated an attack on a vulnerable person at a sensitive time.
Spokesperson Siyabulela Monakali said: “As an organisation that advocates for the rights of women and children, we are deeply concerned by this atrocious act committed by a member of the police service and appeal to our justice system to impose the harshest sentence on the accused.
“There is no place for such acts in our society, no one is above the law and it should apply to everyone.”