A woman told the Durban High Court this week that her alleged rapist offered to buy her a fried chicken meal before he lured her to his house where he raped her.
The woman, who cannot be named because she is a rape survivor, told Judge Kate Pillay that she met the accused at a KFC outlet on Durban’s Victoria Street in June 2014. “I was ready to order when he came to me and introduced himself. He told me not to order, saying I should wait for him until he came back from the toilet. He came back after 15 minutes and ordered two meals for us.”
She told the court that the accused introduced himself as Zakes Ntombela, saying he was a businessman. “When we were done eating, he told me to accompany him to the Workshop shopping centre to pay for his accounts.
“He then asked that we chill in the [Gugu Dlamini] Park for a few hours, saying he wanted us to know more about each other. After an hour, I requested him to accompany me because I had groceries to take home,” said the woman.
Her alleged r_apist, Sipho Shandu, 37, is charged with three counts of r_ape, three of assault with intent of do grievous bodily harm, and three of robbery with aggravating circumstances.
Shandu of Eshowe has pleaded not guilty to the offences, saying all the women were his girlfriends and that they had consensual s_ex.
The woman, dressed in a black skirt and a white top, cried on numerous occasions in the witness box, prompting Pillay to adjourn proceedings for a few minutes to allow her to compose herself.
She testified that instead of the accused taking her home, he lured her to his house, saying he was going to change his clothes first.
“When we arrived at his house he closed the door, pushed me to the bed and r_aped me. I begged him to use a condom but he refused,” she testified.
She told the court that after the accused was done r_aping her he locked her in his room and left.
The woman was rescued by neighbours who heard her loud screams and notified the police.
Shandu allegedly began his r_aping spree at his home village by s_exually assaulting two high school pupils who were friends.
The state alleges that Shandu kidnapped the teenagers at their home in Isamungu and took them to a forest where he raped them before dousing them with petrol.
The women survived the ordeal and notified neighbours.
He allegedly fled the area for Durban, where he continued targeting women before being caught.
The trial continues today.
Source : Live
