A shocking incident has unfolded in KwaZulu-Natal, where a 33-year-old traditional healer stands accused of raping and assaulting three teenage trainees. The accused, whose name cannot be revealed to protect the identities of the minor victims, was arrested following a police investigation.
The victims, aged 14, 15, and 18 respectively, endured a horrifying ordeal at the hands of the sangoma. According to a police insider, the alleged perpetrator employed a sinister modus operandi by making each victim consume large amounts of alcohol and drugs before committing the heinous acts.
The police insider further revealed that the accused would coerce his victims into drinking two full quarts of beer, a glass of vodka, and smoking a joint of dagga along with a loose cigarette. Once the victims were intoxicated and vulnerable, he would manipulate the situation by asking two of the victims to cover themselves with blankets while he raped the remaining victim.
The rapes took place in an outside building on the accused’s property, where the three trainees were residing for their traditional healing training. Shockingly, one of the victims has been impregnated as a result of these horrific acts.
An uncle of one of the victims expressed his disgust at the accused’s actions. He stated that the perpetrator would claim he was invoking the spirits of the ancestors by making the victims drunk and high. Furthermore, he would threaten to harm or kill the victims if they dared to report him.
The uncle went on to disclose that the accused would boast about his ability to evade arrest and prosecution by using his so-called “strong traditional concoctions” if the victims tried to seek justice through the legal system. However, one of the victims managed to gather the courage to confide in her sister, who promptly reported the abuse to the authorities.
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The accused was subsequently arrested and appeared in the Mahlabathini Magistrate’s Court on 8 September. The court postponed the case to 28 September for a formal bail application. Meanwhile, the families of the victims are pleading with the State to oppose bail, as the girls are still traumatized and struggling to cope with the aftermath of the abuse.
Despite receiving counselling from social workers, it is uncertain whether the victims will ever fully recover from the trauma inflicted upon them. The youngest victim, aged just 14, has even refused to return to school due to the shame and emotional distress she now experiences.
