Carel Schoeman, 35, an attorney from Heidelberg who is accused of purchasing a 13-year-old girl, regularly raping her while treating her as a sex slave, appeared in the Gauteng High Court in Palm Ridge on Wednesday, October 30.
He entered a not-guilty plea to the horrifying charges made against him.
The Allegations Against Schoeman
To protect the victim, the mother of the 38-year-old girl is not named on the charging sheet, which alleges that she sold the child to Schoeman.
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She is charged with 72 counts, including kidnapping, sexual exploitation of children, human trafficking, rape, child abuse, and creating pornographic content.
She also allegedly advertised the 13-year-old on pornographic websites, where Schoeman allegedly obtained access to the young girl.
“An amount of R160,000 was agreed upon. Accused two made a down payment of R24,000 to accused one and handed her a motor vehicle,” read the charge sheet.
Schoeman faces 26 charges, including four counts of rape, abduction, child abuse, human trafficking, child exploitation, and using trafficked victims’ services.
Addressing the Epidemic of Child Abuse
Advocates like Sabrina Walter from Women for Change have voiced their concerns, emphasizing the need for urgent social interventions. The participation of parents in such acts raises critical questions about the societal norms surrounding gender-based violence (GBV) and child trafficking.
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“That an attorney is accused of purchasing a young girl and subjecting her to sexual slavery is horrific on its own – but knowing that her mother allegedly played a role in these crimes against her daughter makes this case even more tragic and unbearable,” she said.
According to the global partnership Together for Girls, an alarming statistic reveals that every second, a child experiences some form of sexual violence. Combating child exploitation must therefore involve robust measures, community awareness, and extensive legal repercussions for offenders.
