HORRIFIC
Freddy Mokgweetsi, 26, of Kanye is facing trial in connection with allegedly breaking into the rented house of a six-month-pregnant woman, raping and robbing her.
When the case resumed before Principal Magistrate, Willie Lentlhabetse at the Kanye Magistrates' Court, the complainant recounted the ordeal she endured at her home in Goo-Chibana ward in December 2019.
Court heard that Mokgweetsi, who was 19 years old at the time of the incident, forced his way into the 38-year-old woman’s rented house by breaking a window.
The complainant, now 45, was awakened by the sound of shattering glass as the intruder entered the house. Once inside, Mokgweetsi allegedly demanded money and a cellphone from the frightened
woman, and fearing for her life, she handed over her last P200 and cellphone.
After taking the cash and phone, Mokgweetsi allegedly raped her despite being six months pregnant, with a belly that witnesses described as “large and rounded” at the time, and then fled the scene.
Investigators were able to identify the suspect using the surveillance footage captured by CCTV cameras installed at the property where the complainant rented a room.
The complainant’s landlords, who had known the accused for some time as he had previously lived in the same yard, recognised him from the footage.
The landlords’ children also identified the accused after the footage was enlarged during investigations. Mokgweetsi was initially granted bail, but it was later revoked after the complainant’s evidence.
Five witnesses have since testified, with three more left to wrap the prosecution’s case.
Among the remaining witnesses are a medical doctor who examined the complainant following the alleged attack and a forensic expert.
The trial was postponed to October 22, 2026, when Principal Magistrate Lentlhabetse will determine whether the prosecution has proven its case beyond reasonable doubt.