LEBOGANG SEALE
A SOWETO man who was arrested for allegedly raping his 10-year-old stepdaughter looked composed as he made his first appearance in the Protea Magistrate’s Court.
The man, who may not be named, to protect the identity of the girl, was arrested at his house in Chiawelo. He allegedly raped the girl last week while her mother was not at home. The girl only disclosed the crime to a relative on Monday.
The relative then opened a case at the nearby Moroka police station and told the police the man was HIV-positive and that he had been taking medication for HIV at the local clinic.
None of his relatives was present yesterday when he appeared in court.
Dressed in crumpled navy blue pants and a black jacket, the partly grey-haired man appeared unfazed as he sauntered into the dock.
As soon as the rape charge was read out to him, he asked to be released on bail.
This was immediately shot down by the State, with the prosecutor indicating he would oppose bail.
The man applied for a legal aid lawyer and his case was postponed to September 29 for a bail application.
Jonathan Berger, a senior researcher at SECTION27, a public interest law centre, said charging a person who deliberately infected another person with HIV was “an academic matter that depended entirely on a range of facts”.
He said, however, this could be used “as an aggravating factor in sentencing”.