Police in Mafube have arrested a 28-year-old man for allegedly robbing and raping a 94-year-old grandmother in Namahadi, Frankfort, Free State police said on Sunday.

It was alleged that the woman was woken a few hours after going to bed on Friday night by a strange sound, and believed it to be rats in her house, Captain Livhuhani Hani said.

“She then switched on the light to scare them off, but was shocked to see a man walk into her room towards her bed. The man instructed her to close her eyes and then grabbed her and undressed her. The man hit her and told her to stop screaming and allegedly raped her,” he said.

The neighbours heard the woman’s screams and came to her rescue. When her grandson returned home and was informed of what transpired, he recalled that he had met a man matching the description the old lady had provided inside their yard earlier before he went out with his friends.

“The grandson had asked the man what he wanted in the yard and the man had said he was looking for a certain person whom the grandson did not know, and he unknowingly informed the man that he only lives with his grandmother and no one else.

“With this information the police went to the streets of Namahadi, and searched every corner and the suspect was later found in a tavern still wearing the same clothes the victim had described. He was arrested and detained at Mafube SAPS [SA Police Service].

The man would appear in the Frankfort Magistrate’s Court on Monday for a bail application, Hani said.

South Africa Today – South Africa News

