Village head turns sister to sex slave

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FOR a Simatelele village head in Binga, the old adage that “blood is thicker than water” did not apply to him after he raped his 11-year-old sister and turned her into a sex slave.

FOR a Simatelele village head in Binga, the old adage that “blood is thicker than water” did not apply to him after he raped his 11-year-old sister and turned her into a sex slave.

TINASHE MUNGAZI OWN CORRESPONDENT

The disgraced village head was yesterday convicted and slapped with a 15-year jail term despite protesting his innocence when he appeared before regional magistrate for the Western region, Dambudzo Malunga.

Three years of the sentence were suspended on condition of good behaviour.

The complainant was doing Grade 5 during the time of the sexual abuse.

“I was found guilty, but I did not commit the offence as stated in this court. I’m a victim in all this because I know nothing. I did no one any wrong at all,” insisted the headman.

However, Malunga described him as a cruel person, who introduced the girl to adulthood at a tender age when he was instead supposed to protect his younger sister from sexual predators.

“You were cruel to the complainant. As a brother, you were supposed to be protecting her, not turning into the victim yourself. The offence you committed is serious. You introduced her to adulthood at a tender age against her will,” Malunga lashed out.

Prosecutor Tawanda Sigauke told the court that on unspecified dates, but between January 2013 and February 2014, the headman, who was also his younger sister’s guardian, would enter her bedroom while she slept and threaten to assault her if she made any noise before raping her.

“Complainant did not disclose the matter to anyone but it, however, came to light when she started absconding from school. This prompted her teacher to investigate, leading to the complainant revealing the sexual abuse,” Sigauke said.

A report was made to the police, leading to the arrest of the village head.