By Staff Reporter
BOLOBEDU -A 20-year-old alleged serial Facebook rapist was arrested by the Tzaneen Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences Unit on Christmas Day.
The suspect was arrested following several reported rape incidents of girls aged between 14 and 16 in the Bolobedu and Modjadjiskloof policing area since the beginning of December 2024.
According Limpopo police spokesperson Brigadier the suspect allegedly lured his victims through Facebook and upon meeting them at Kgapane Plaza, he would convince them to walk a distance to the bushes near Manningburg where he raped and robbed them off their belongings such as cash and cellphones.
In one of the cases, the suspect met a teenage girl while she was walking to her friend’s house in Ga-Kgapane village and attacked her from behind. He then blindfolded her and dragged her to the same crime scene ( Manningburg) where he raped her before robbing her cash and cellphone.
The suspect was arrested while at the Kgapane hospital where he was admitted after being attacked by one of the victims in sef-defence.
During the arrest, he was found in possession of a fake identity document. The Police also recovered some of the robbed cash and cellphone.
According to preliminary investigations, the suspect was on bail for another rape case of a 14-year-old girl that occurred in September 2024, using the same modus operandi.
The Provincial Commissioner of police in Limpopo, Lieutenant General Thembi Hadebe has warned community members against the irresponsible usage of social media.
The Provincial Commissioner has welcomed the arrest of the alleged rapists and appealed to communities especially young women to be cautious when interacting with strangers on social media platforms such as facebook, since this poses a significant risk on their safety.
The arrested suspects are expected to appear before the Tzaneen Magistrate’s Court on Friday, 27 December 2024.
