Cape Town - The police have unearthed more cases of alleged sexual assault – from children in Joburg and Klerksdorp – against a Cape Town police officer in the dock for the statutory rape of two local boys.
On Wednesday, the 40-year-old officer who worked as a warrant officer at the Bellville South police station, shuffled into the dock wearing a back brace when he appeared in the Blue Downs Magistrate’s Court.
At initial court appearances he said that the brace resulted from a previous back injury.
He currently faces charges of statutory rape and sexual assault for allegedly raping two teenage boys on numerous occasions and over a number of years.
It was alleged the officer paid the two 14-year-old boys between R50 and R200 so they would not report him.
The State alleges that he had been sexually assaulting one of the boys since 2010, when the child was 10.
The matter was reported to police watchdog the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid) on June 20.
He was arrested in July and has since been suspended from the police.
On Wednesday, the court heard that the State was waiting for outstanding statements from six more potential complainants.
Prosecutor Michelle Hart said that the investigating officer travelled to Joburg and Klerksdorp to get the statements.
“The more statements we take, the more information we receive about other cases,” she said.
The court heard that there were images found on a laptop computer linked to the officer – about 7 000 photos that need to be investigated.
Not all of the images may be related to the alleged offences.
The officer’s attorney, Garth Jonkers, told the court that three months should be sufficient time to collect the relevant information.
“I understand that there are difficulties with the cyber images,” Jonkers said, adding that he was waiting for medical, psychological and psychiatric reports from Pollsmoor.
He said he would need to arrange to get the records through the regional office of the Department of Correctional Services and needed time.
Concerns were raised regarding an address for the officer before he can apply for bail.
The court heard that his wife was in the process of divorcing him and would be a State witness in the case.
He has also has an unrelated pending fraud case against him in the Kuils River Magistrate’s Court.
There is a possibility that the matter may be heard in the Western Cape High Court.
Shortly after his arrest the officer had been hospitalised after he tried to commit suicide while in custody at the Kraaifontein police station’s holding cells.
He will remain in custody until his next court appearance on February 3.
Cape Argus