Tinaye Agere
A 16-year-old Zambian house help has admitted to assaulting a one-year-old child by pouring hot water on him after he defecated on himself.
The juvenile was charged with assault on a child occasioning actual bodily harm.
When the matter came before the court, the juvenile pleaded guilty.
The accused told the court that she slapped the boy after he soiled his pants and later scalded him as she was about to cook.
“Yes, I beat him because he defecated on himself; he is not my son, I was just a house help and I scalded him on his back (with the hot water),” narrated the accused.
Facts before the court are that on the day in question, the accused poured hot water on the infant after discovering that he had soiled himself.
The accused was apparently seen by another juvenile, who was present and later alerted neighbours and the victim’s mother, who then reported the matter to the police.
Questioning the parent, the magistrate noted that the accused was a minor and should not have been allowed custody of another child.
The accused was remanded in custody as the matter was moved to a later date. — Wires
Bongani Ndlovu