Online Reporter
Danisa Masuku [email protected]
TWO men, who are accused of stoning and dragging a woman to a home before detaining her for a day and taking turns to sexually attack her appeared in court on Monday .
Naphital Ncube (36) and his friend Justice Mazinyane (36) appeared for trial before Bulawayo Regional Magistrate Mr Lungile Ncube. They pleaded not guilty to two counts of rape and kidnapping.
They represented themselves. In his defence, Ncube said the complainant, whose name cannot be mentioned for ethical reasons, was at a nightclub drinking beer and was hired for sexual services by his co- accused.
“Mazinyane asked for a place to have sex with her and I provided them with a room. I slept alone in my room. In the morning, I woke up Mazinyane and went to collect my money from someone who owed me. I never slept with her or pelted her and her lover with stones,” he said.
Mazinyane told the court that the woman charged him US$4 for a short time and that he had sex with her at Ncube’s place.
“While we were drinking beer at around 3AM, I saw her dancing while wearing a skimpy skirt. I was attracted to her and hired her for sexual services. She charged me US$4 for a short time. We went to Ncube’s home and had sex. In the morning, I accompanied Ncube to collect his money. When we returned, we found that she had left. She took Ncube’s clothes and left hers. It was consensual. I never raped her and I never pelted her and her lover with stones,” he told the court.
The woman took to the witness stand and gave an incoherent statement. At first, she told the court the pair followed her and pelted her and her lover with stones.
“It was shortly after 3AM when I left for home with my lover. While we had walked a few metres from the nightclub, the accused persons followed us and pelted stones at us.
“They caught up with us, Ncube grabbed me and raped me while Mazinyane pelted my lover, forcing him to run away,” she said.
She later changed her statement and told the court that the accused persons dragged her to Ncube’s home and took turns to sexually attack her.
“They dragged me to Ncube’s home. Upon arriving, Ncube fetched an iron rod and ordered me to strip naked. After that, they took turns to rape me. They locked me in the room for the whole day and told me that I was now their wife,” she said.
During cross examination, when she was asked what she did to alert neighbours to come to her rescue, she said: “I did not scream. I sat outside the room and cried. I had to scale over the precast wall later in the evening when passers by saw me sitting at the veranda crying.”
The matter was postponed to Tuesday for judgment and sentencing.
Prosecuting, Ms Nkanyezi Xaba told the court that on 7 February this year at around 3AM the complainant was coming from a nightclub with her lover when the two accused persons approached them and started assaulting the complainant with clenched fists.
“The two accused persons, acting in common purpose, then forcibly took the complainant to Ncube’s place. The complainant’s lover followed them and the two accused persons picked up stones and pelted him until he ran away,” said Ms Xaba.
The court heard that they force marched her to Ncube’s home where, upon arrival, they led her into one of the rooms and Ncube sexually attacked her while his co accused was watching.
“After Ncube had raped her, his co accused sexually attacked her. They did that several times. They locked her in the room and left. It was then that the complainant managed to escape and reported the matter to the police,” said Ms Xaba.
