A 38-year-old man from Dete in Hwange has been arrested for allegedly raping and impregnating his 17-year-old daughter.
The man (name withheld to protect the identity of the victim) sexually abused his teenage daughter while his wife was away.
Three weeks after the rape incident, the man gave his daughter three pills to drink “to avoid pregnancy” and she did as instructed.
Matabeleland North provincial police spokesperson Inspector Glory Banda confirmed the man’s arrest last week. Said Insp Banda:
I can confirm that we have arrested a 38-year-old male from Dete who allegedly raped and impregnated his 17-year-old daughter.
Circumstances are that on an unknown date but in October last year the complainant and her sibling aged nine were sitting together with the accused person.
They decided to retire to bed with the accused also going to sleep in his room. During the course of the night, the complainant woke up when she felt something on top of her.
Insp Banda said the girl, feeling sexually abused as well, pushed the person on top of her away before switching on her torch.
She was shocked to see her father tiptoeing out of the room and when she asked him the following day why he had raped her, the father denied the charge. Added Insp Banda:
In November 2020 the complainant told her mother about the rape and everything that had transpired while she was away.
However, the matter only came to light on 8 February 2021 through an anonymous tip-off from a member of the community.
Investigations were carried out leading to the location of the complainant who revealed the offence resulting in the accused’s arrest. The complainant is now pregnant.