A Grahamstown primary school teacher has been found not guilty of raping his 15-year-old pupil after the girl’s little sister testified that she had lied.
A Grahamstown primary school teacher has been found not guilty of raping his 15-year-old pupil after the girl’s little sister testified that she had lied.
The 52-year-old Archie Mbolekwa Higher Primary School teacher, Mxolisi Bobo who pleaded not guilty, was acquitted in the regional court after a two day trial after Magistrate Samson Dunywa concluded that based on evidence given by the pupil’s younger sister, the complainant had lied about being raped by the teacher.
Dunywa also found Bobo not guilty of having sex with a female under the age of 16 as the complainant had not brought her birth certificate to prove her age.
The pupil, who cannot be named, accused Bobo of raping her in his home in Extension 4 on 12 September 2007.
The girl, who was in Bobo’s geography class, testified that Bobo had locked her in his house and forced her to have sex with him.
Odd behaviour
In her testimony she said Bobo had asked to kiss her in 2006 and then raped her in 2007.
She said Bobo told her not to tell anyone about the rape and that she had concented because she feared Bobo except that she told her younger sister, who had then told her father.
Testifying against her sister on Tuesday, her younger sister told the court that when her sister arrived home that day and told her about her sexual encounter with the teacher, she had been in a “happy mood”.
The young girl said that she got the impression that her sister was “boasting about her encounter with the teacher”.
Bobo’s lawyer Lunga Marenene had questioned that it took two weeks for the case to be reported to the police.
Marenene had also raised concern that the girl was smiling while testifying.
Late report
The complainant had only been examined by a doctor almost two weeks after the alleged rape and the doctor’s medical report, which was submitted to court, showed no evidence of penetration.
The lawyer had argued that because the pupil’s evidence had not been supported by the medical report or her sister’s testimony, “there is no proof to support her evidence and the benefit of the doubt should be afforded to the accused and he should be acquitted”.
Magistrate Dunywa agreed as this made the complainant a single witness.
