Rustenburg - A 20-year-old man has been arrested for the alleged statutory rape of a missing Rustenburg teenager, North West police said on Friday.
Police spokesperson Captain Elsabe Augoustides said the missing 14-year-old girl was found in Boitekong near Rustenburg late on Thursday. She was in the company of a 20-year-old man.
"The man who was found in the company of the teenager, who is [also] not a foreign national, has been arrested and is expected to appear in the Rustenburg Magistrate's Court on Monday, 13 November 2017 on charges of statutory rape."
The girl had failed to come back home from school on November 3 and was reported missing to the police on November 5.
The search for her led to the burning of five house belonging to foreign nationals who were suspected to be responsible for her disappearance.
"Investigations into three cases of arson are still underway and no one has been arrested," Augoustides said.
Rustenburg Cluster Commander, Major General Arthur Adams, urged members of the community to refrain from taking the law into their own hands.
He added that the police would not hesitate to take drastic action against any person who disregarded the rule of law.