In a move that has been hailed as a step in the right direction by the justice system, a 47-year-old man was denied bail by the Dzanani Magistrate's Court on Monday, 12 May.
The man, who cannot be identified to protect the identity of the victim, who is a minor, is a senior official in the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions: Limpopo Division. He stands accused on 10 counts of rape involving a 16-year-old girl.
He appeared in the Dzanani Magistrate's Court where he applied for bail.
The girl's ordeal allegedly started in 2022 and continued until this year, when she could no longer stand it and broke the silence. She reported her ordeal to her mother, disclosing that she had been raped by the accused since 2022, when she was only 13 years old.
The mother then notified an uncle, and the matter was reported at the Dzanani police station, after which the accused was arrested.
The man was arrested on 29 April and has been applying for bail since last week.
The court refused to grant him bail, citing that he did not advance enough reasons to prove exceptional circumstances for him to be released on bail.
The matter has been postponed to 25 June for further investigations. He remains in custody.
Reacting after the judgment, Mr Richard Mukhaninga of the Vhembe Concerned Group said they were highly encouraged by the court's refusal to grant the suspect bail.
"We have been here since the start of the bail application. We have been in our stand to say that he should not be granted bail. Remember, this is no ordinary person but an officer in the NPA's provincial office. We do not have anything against him, but we want justice to prevail," he said.
The NPA's Mashudu Malabi- Dzhangi said the Director of Public Prosecutions would have to take a decision [on] whether to suspend him or not, following the bail outcome. She hinted that the state had strong case against the accused.