Johannesburg - Police are scanning the electronic devices belonging to four people, including a church pastor, accused of raping a 9-year-old boy in an alleged satanic ritual.
This is to determine if they contain any illegal pornography.
This emerged in the Germiston Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday, when the 9-year-old’s grandparents, uncle and pastor appeared on charges of the alleged rape.
While a trial date was expected to be set, the court heard that the police needed time to download the data of all four accused’s cellphones and laptops to search for child porn and other evidence.
The group were arrested last month. Police suspect they brought the then 7-year-old to the Full Gospel Church of God in Witfield, Boksburg, in 2013.
At the venue, the four, clad in red robes and chanting, allegedly forced the boy to fondle their genitals before the uncle is said to have raped the boy.
At court on Wednesday it emerged that the uncle was also set to change his address, meaning his bail conditions had to be altered to allow him to visit Brakpan police station instead of the one in Primrose.
Investigators requested a six-week postponement to complete the data download, prompting the non-profit organisation monitoring the case, Women and Men Against Child Abuse (WMACA), to express concern.
WMACA advocacy manager Germaine Vogel said she had spoken to a senior official at the National Prosecuting Authority who told her “there is a lack of capacity as far as resources and computers for the police in analysing material on cellphones and laptops”. Vogel believes the backlog may have been exacerbated due to numerous arrests in another matter involving a child porn syndicate.
The case continues on May 8.
The Star