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Court Reporter
An HIV-positive man who raped his orphaned six-year-old niece, infecting her with sexually transmitted diseases and the HIV virus, will spend the next 20 years in prison.The man (39), who was employed in Crowhill Views, Borrowdale as a gardener, pleaded not guilty to aggravated indecent assault charges.
However, Harare magistrate Fadzai Mtombeni convicted him of rape and sentenced him to 20 years in jail.
“The court considered the presumption that he could have infected the child with the virus. The child was treated of STIs and this is aggravating by any standards,” said Ms Mtombeni.
“The child, who is an orphan, ended up in accused’s hands through his wife. Accused was his guardian and this is aggravating.” Proven facts are that sometime in April this year, the minor was playing with her friends outside at the man’s house in Masvingo.
The man is uncle to the little girl. When the girl got tired of playing with her friend she decided to go inside the house to drink water.
The man, who was in the house, asked the minor to sit on his lap and she complied. He inserted his finger in the little girl’s private parts and told her not to tell anyone before releasing her to play with her friends.
In May the minor’s school teacher noticed that the little girl was not walking properly. Upon being quizzed the minor revealed that she was raped, leading to the arrest of the man.
Online Reporter