Online Reporter
Danisa Masuku
A MAN who repeatedly exposed himself to schoolgirls, sending them fleeing in fear, has been jailed for 12 months.
Maxwell Ndlovu appeared before Bulawayo magistrate Golden Muyambo on Thursday facing five counts of indecent assault.
He had pleaded not guilty, insisting the girls had fabricated the allegations.
“The four children are fabricating stories against me. I never did it,” he said.
But after hearing the evidence, Magistrate Muyambo convicted Ndlovu and sentenced him to an effective 12 months in prison.
Prosecuting, Mehluli Ndlovu told the court that Ndlovu targeted girls on their way to school, emerging from bushes and exposing himself.
In February this year, the court heard, a 15-year-old girl was walking to school when Ndlovu emerged from the bush and ran towards her.
He allegedly unzipped his trousers and exposed himself, causing the terrified girl to scream and run towards the school. The court heard that Ndlovu allegedly repeated the same act the following month, this time shouting at the girl before exposing himself.
She screamed for help before running to a nearby homestead where she sought refuge.
On 17 June, another girl was reportedly walking to school at around 8am when she encountered Ndlovu in a bushy area.
The court heard that Ndlovu was wearing a mask when he emerged from the bush, ordered the girl to stop and allegedly exposed himself.
The girl ignored him and ran away screaming for help.
Another 14-year-old girl was also allegedly targeted while on her way to school.
According to the prosecution, Ndlovu emerged from a bush, shouted at her to stop and exposed himself when she looked in his direction.
The frightened girl reportedly ran and sought refuge.
The court heard that on 18 June, another teenage girl was walking to school when Ndlovu allegedly emerged from a bush.
She immediately fled, but Ndlovu chased after her before eventually giving up.
The girl ran to a nearby home and hid there.
In aggravation, the prosecutor told the court that the conduct was unacceptable.
“The offender exposed his private parts to the school-going girls and that is against Ubuntu,” he said.
One of the girls, in a victim impact statement, told the court that the incident continued to haunt her and that she was struggling to erase the memory of what she had witnessed.
