A KAMATIVI police officer who was being tried in court on allegations of raping a 16-year-old girl has been acquitted after the victim claimed she had fabricated the story.
By Nokuthaba Dlamini
John Mashoko (29) of Kamativi police base was arrested in January and his trial, presided over by regional magistrate Colet Ncube, ended on Tuesday after the State failed to produce compelling evidence.
It was the State’s case that on a day unknown to the prosecutor, but in the month of January, Mashoko allegedly raped the 16-year-old along a foot path as he was escorting her to her place of residence.
The juvenile was his girlfriend’s niece.
During cross-examination, the teenager exonerated Mashoko, claiming that she was possessed by a spirit that pushes her to be lustful and fabricate sexual abuse charges against those who show no interest in her, and Mashoko was one of those.
“I went to give him a grocery list which he was supposed to give to my aunt who looks after us. He escorted me, but did not propose love or have sex with me. I became angry and this prompted me to make false rape allegations against him and I apologise for that,” the girl confessed.
The girl revealed that she once implicated her uncle as he did not show any sexual interest for her and the matter was resolved at a family court.
