Johannesburg - The man arrested for the rape and murder of his colleague’s daughter 4, had earlier allegedly tried to rape the mother as she slept.
However, the friend they were with and whose house they were at saw what he was trying to do and stopped him.
The man then allegedly abducted the woman’s child, raped and killed her.
This information was revealed in the Kgomotso Magistrates' Court on Monday, when 26-year-old Johannes Bafana Mans made his first court appearance.
He was arrested last week after Tshimologo Lotshabeng’s naked body was found in bushes at Kgomotso village near Taung in the North West, also last week..
Police launched a manhunt for the perpetrator. Mans was arrested at his house in Jan Kempdorp two days after the murder.
Police spokesperson Colonel Amanda Funani said Tshimologo’s mother had taken her daughter to her friend's house last week Saturday.
She left her in the company of six other children, aged between 9 and 13 years, and went to a tavern.
She returned to the house in the early hours of Saturday, accompanied by Mans, whom she works with. The three of them were drunk and all slept in the same room.
Funani said the friend allegedly saw Mans trying to rape Tshimologo’s mother who was asleep. She stopped him.
Mans allegedly waited for everyone to fall asleep, then went to the room where Tshimologo was sleeping with other children.
He allegedly carried her as she slept, took her to nearby bushes and raped her. Afterwards, he allegedly strangled her.
When Tshimologo’s mother woke up, she realised that her child was missing.
“She went back to her own house to look for the girl but did not find her. A missing person enquiry was ultimately reported.
“Subsequent to the search conducted in the area, the girl's clothes and naked body were found in the bushes. “Preliminary investigation revealed that the young girl was allegedly raped and strangled,” Funani said.
Mans faces charges of kidnapping, rape, murder and attempted rape. He remains in custody and his case has been postponed to May 31 for legal representation.