Mother demands justice after daughter ‘raped while in hands of caregiver’

As a single mother, finding someone to look after her 16-year-old daughter while she worked two jobs was intended to bring peace of mind.

Instead, the decision has left her fighting for justice after her daughter, who has a mental disability, allegedly became the victim of rape while in the care of a woman she had trusted.

The mother told TimesLIVE she had arranged for the woman to collect her daughter from a school of skills in Bloemfontein and look after her while she was working.

According to a complaint she submitted to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), seen by TimesLIVE, the caregiver collected the teenager on April 10, as per the agreement. On Monday April 13, over a telephone call, the daughter told her mother what had allegedly happened over the weekend.

The caregiver allegedly took the woman’s daughter to a tavern, where alcohol was bought before they went to a house where several adults were drinking. Her daughter was given alcohol — including Amarula and Black Label beer — despite being 16 years old.

The mother said her daughter told her that the caregiver and her boyfriend fell asleep, after which she was instructed to engage in sexual conduct with people she did not know.

The alleged perpetrator was placed in the same vehicle as her and her daughter by the police official

A medical examination followed. The mother said her daughter was taken to hospital on April 14, where a doctor confirmed that penetration had occurred. She then told police that her daughter had a mental disability and cannot consent.

But what followed has become almost as painful as the alleged assault. The mother said when she accompanied her daughter to identify the alleged perpetrator on April 15, the investigating officer first took them to the house where the incident had occurred.

She said they then went to the school, where the alleged perpetrator was identified by her daughter. The alleged perpetrator was placed in the same vehicle as her and her daughter by the police official.

“I was looking at my child, her reaction, in the same vehicle with the perpetrator,” describing the experience as causing further trauma to her daughter.

The mother said she was later told the case had been dismissed because the alleged perpetrator said the sexual intercourse was consensual.

She subsequently approached the NPA and the matter was reopened for further investigation. The teenager was then referred for a psychological assessment. She said the assessment was completed and the report was returned to police, confirming that the daughter cannot consent.

I’m scared to leave her unsupervised or take her to school … All I’m asking is that justice must be served for my child—  Mother

Free State police spokesperson Lt-Col Thabo Covane confirmed that the matter had been reopened and said the docket is currently with the director of public prosecutions (DPP).

He said police had initially received instructions indicating that the sexual encounter was considered consensual, but concerns were later raised about information suggesting the teenager may not have been capable of making decisions for herself. The NPA then instructed police to have the child assessed.

Covane said the police are awaiting a decision from the NPA on the way forward and if a warrant of arrest for the alleged perpetrator should be issued.

For the teen’s mother, the process has come at a heavy personal cost. She said her daughter has struggled to return to normal life. She is struggling at school after being subjected to bullying and she has needed treatment for post-traumatic stress.

She does not want her daughter out of her sight. “I’m scared to leave her unsupervised or take her to school,” she said.

The mother said she approached the authorities, including the NPA and the DPP, because she fears that without continued pressure, her daughter’s case will disappear.

“All I’m asking is that justice must be served for my child.”