Mkhuhlu - A 52-year-old man, who claimed to be a prophet, was arrested for allegedly raping a 20-year-old woman near Mkhuhlu, outside Hazyview, Mpumalanga police said on Tuesday.
Spokesperson Sergeant Gerald Sedibe said that man allegedly sexually abused the woman under the pretext of being a prophet at Oakley Trust.
"According to information at [the] police's disposal, the incident happened yesterday, 17 July 2017, when the young woman who was ill went to seek help from the “prophet” accompanied by her boyfriend. The suspect then took them to the bushes under false pretext that he was going to pray for her and instructed the boyfriend to go back along the way," Sedibe said.
"When they arrived at a certain spot, he began to perform his injunctions giving the victim some concoction to drink, where after he told her to undress so that he could apply some on her body and that is when he raped her."
Sedibe said the woman reported the rape to the police and the bogus prophet was arrested the same day.
He is expected to appear in the Mkhuhlu Magistrates' Court on Wednesday, facing a charge of rape.
"The police in Mpumalanga are hereby warning women to be on the alert of false prophets or pastors who would take them to secluded areas or order them to undress under false pretext that they are praying for them. Such incidents should be reported to the police as soon as possible. This warning comes after several cases have been registered in the province wherein women were raped under the same modus operandi," Sedibe said.