Limpopo cops hunt for suspect known as ’Belamine’ after rape of child

On both occasions the suspect allegedly called the child and sent her to a nearby shop. Upon her return, he reportedly ordered the young girl into his house and raped her.

PRETORIA, April 12 (ANA) – Police in Vhulaudzi in Vhembe district in South Africa’s Limpopo province on Monday appealed for information that could lead to the arrest of a man who allegedly raped an eleven-year-old child in his house on two occasions in February and March before disappearing.

“The suspect on both occasions allegedly called the child and sent her to the nearby shop and upon her return, he reportedly ordered her into his house and raped her. The rape was only discovered by the mother on 22 March,” Limpopo police spokesman Brigadier Motlafela Mojapelo said in a statement.

He said preliminary investigations pointed to a neighbour believed to be a foreign national but “follow up probes could not yield any positive results as he has apparently disappeared from the area”.

“The police are calling on someone called Belamine or Eshrom to avail himself to the nearest police station as it is believed he might be able to assist in ongoing investigations,” Mojapelo added.

Last year, a 34-year-old Limpopo man was sentenced to life imprisonment by the Mankweng regional court after he was convicted of raping a 10-year-old child.

The rapist was the victim’s neighbour who frequently visited her home. He was at his homestead when the victim was sent to a shop in March 2019 but disappeared as soon as the young girl left on her errand.

The victim did not come back from the shop, leading to a search for her. She was later found with a R20 note which she said the man had given her after raping her.

A medical examination confirmed the sexual assault. The child revealed this was the third time the man had raped her.

– African News Agency (ANA), Editing by Stella Mapenzauswa