By Heinz de Boer
A young Durban man has vowed to see his abusers in court, six years after he was molested in a child porn scandal. John (not his real name) was 15 years old when a respected Gauteng attorney lured him from his mother's northern KwaZulu-Natal home to a plush Sandton mansion that served as a child porn studio.
Alcohol, possibly laced with drugs and sweet words from the persuasive man was all that was needed to passively force John into bed with two other young boys as his "friend" filmed the sordid affair.
Sometime during the boy's four-day stay at the house the attorney turned the camera on automatic and joined the youngsters under the covers, where he took turns in sodomising the boys. Police have since confirmed that a second Sandton attorney is being investigated for his role in also abusing the boys at the same filming.
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| His 'friend' filmed the sordid affair | For John the road to spiritual recovery has been a long one laced with memories of abuse that now form part of a major police investigation.
While hours of counselling and two suicide attempts have done little to ease the humiliation and self blame he feels, John said he would not rest until the two men who had pledged to uphold the law were brought to justice.
"At first I was so depressed I tried to cut my wrists and take medication. I thought it was my fault. Now I realise that it was not just me, but lots of other boys - some of whom he had picked up on the streets of Thailand where he had travelled.
Superintendent Andre Neetling, Gauteng provincial family violence and child protection and sexual offence unit co-ordinator, said although the matter was reported to police in February, the investigating officers were hampered by being forced to watch "hundreds" of porn videos seized from the attorney's home. Neetling confirmed the men face multiple charges of indecent assault and have yet to appear in court.
But for John, a "slap" on the wrist for the two men won't prevent them from doing it again to other young boys, he said.
"He needs to be sent to jail for what he did to us. They both knew it was wrong," said John.
- This article was originally published on page 6 of Daily News on October 24, 2006
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