Joy as 'rapist' teacher denied bail!

THE family of a 13-year-old pupil from Makotopong in Limpopo is celebrating.

This follows the bail judgment handed down against the 58-year-old teacher accused of rape.

The accused appeared in the Mankweng Magistrates Court on Tuesday, 29 April.

His bail application was denied, and the case was postponed to 20 June 2025 for further investigation.

He remains in custody.

The accused allegedly sexually assaulted the victim multiple times between July 2024 and March 2025.

On 27 March, another teacher reportedly caught him sexually abusing the victim during school hours.

After evading the police for three days, he was arrested on 31 March.

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The court heard that the accused would allegedly call the victim to his classroom during morning prayer sessions attended by other pupils and teachers and proceed to allegedly sexually assault her.

During the bail hearing, the accused's defence lawyer Advocate Michael Khumalo requested bail, claiming he needed to pursue training for his ancestral calling.

However, the State, led by Advocate Joel Mamabolo, opposed this, arguing that the accused failed to provide his "gobela" to confirm this claim.

Handing down the judgment, Magistrate Venus Makhubela said: "The court looked at the evidence presented by the state and the defence as a whole. In the court's view, none of the personal circumstances by the applicant are extraordinary or peculiar to warrant a finding in his favour. Therefore, the applicant's bail is dismissed."

Speaking to Daily Sun, the victim's 55-year-old aunt shared her thoughts, saying they were in a celebratory mood.

"Although it's still early, today we are celebrating. We believe in our justice system and are happy with how the magistrate delivered this judgment. "The victim is not coping at all. What's more difficult for her is when she has to go to school. She's not taking it easy. She's overwhelmed. She spends most of her time alone. However, we believe today's judgment will bring some kind of relief to her," she said.

Ward 24 Councillor Alex Ngoesheng expressed his satisfaction, emphasising a step forward for justice. "Bail denied a win for the victim and her family. This is what we have been calling for. The wheels of justice are finally moving in the right direction," he said.

Resident Albert Masondo (55) from Turf, who joined the picket outside the court, called for President Cyril Ramaphosa to tackle gender-based violence (GBV) head-on.

"This thing of rape is not good for kids. I'm saying to the president to call all men to address this issue. We have to meet at the stadium to address GBV," he said.