South Africa’s rape case withdrawn after witness deemed too young to testify

Rape charges against a worker in a creche in Cape Town, South Africa was removed from the court roll because the witness, aged two, is considered too young to testify.

The accused, a worker at the creche, was in court for allegedly raping the two-year-old child in November 2017.

“The perpetrator was arrested. We have a case number, and my daughter’s forensic examination confirmed that she was raped. The prosecutor said they could not pursue the conviction due to lack of evidence and my daughter was deemed too young,” read an email from the child’s parents to a local news outlet News24.

The parent further added that the child is able to testify in the court and identify the perpetrator.

The country’s National Prosecuting Authority confirmed that the case was indeed withdrawn earlier in the month for investigation purposes. It requested that the child be brought to them in October 2018 to establish her competency.

The Police spokesperson FC Van Wyk has said that the case will be back to the court as soon as forensic reports and other details have been completed.