The ManicaPost
Lovemore Kadzura : Rusape Correspondent
A MUTASA father allegedly forced his daughter to smoke mbanje till she passed out, before raping her several times.The man (54) of Mareya Village, Headman Samanga is not represented and in custody, pleaded not guilty to the heinous charge, telling the court that his 20-year-old daughter is not mentally stable. The daughter, a Form Two dropout, told the court that her mother passed away after divorcing his father and she was staying with her father.
She further told the court that on the first day of the rape, her father made her smoke mbanje during the night and she later discovered later in the morning that she had been raped while she was unconscious. She added that her father continued to rape her on several occasions and she could not report to anyone as his father is of a violent nature.
Rusape District prosecutor, Mr Tirivanhu Mutyasira told the court that the matter only came to light after police received a tip-off and the girl was questioned. She admitted that her father was allegedly raping her.
“The accused person is the complainant’s biological father. The accused person had divorced the complainant’s mother sometime back and started staying with her. Sometime in January 2016 at around 10pm, the complainant was sleeping in her bedroom and was alone when her father entered. The complainant who found it strange then went into the dining room, leaving the accused person behind.
“The accused person latter followed the complainant into the dining room and was smoking. The father forced his daughter to smoke the cigarette he saw smoking. Soon after smoking it, the complainant became unconscious. The father went on to rape his daughter.
“The accused person further slept with his daughter on several occasions and on different days without her consent. The complainant did not report the case because she feared victimisation from the accused person. The case was anonymously reported to the police,” said Mr Mutyasira.
Rusape regional magistrate, Mr Livingstone Chipadza, adjourned the matter to August 25 August for continuation of trial.
