The Dros restaurant group said it had been in contact with the parents of the 6-year-old girl raped at one of its restaurants, to convey its sympathy.
The statement issued on Tuesday reads:
"We have been in contact with the parents of the child to convey our sympathy and offered our assistance in any form that would (or could) reasonably be required in a matter of this nature.”
“We have also been in close communication with the owners, management and staff of the said Dros outlet.”
Dros was unable to disclose any further information due to the sensitive nature of the case,
"As this matter is currently under investigation by the South African Police Service (SAPS), and due to [its] sensitive nature, we are not in a position to comment and/or disclose any further information," it further reads.
The man allegedly preyed on the girl and later followed her to the toilet, where he raped her.
The incident took place in a toilet in the Silverton Dros on Saturday.
The 20-year-old man made a brief appearance in the Pretoria Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday on a charge of rape.
He appeared to have been beaten badly, and had a split ear.
The matter was postponed to October 2 for further investigation and the accused will remain in custody.
The man had allegedly been scouting and preying on the child for some time while she was in the children’s area, and waited for her to go to the toilet.
An eyewitness told Radio 702: "I have seen this guy in the restaurant before, even the waitresses know this guy. When he got there, he was sitting near the kids play area, while he was having a glass of water, he had his eye on the area, looking at her and waited for her to go to the toilet and followed her."
A Facebook post moments after the incident read: “This man just raped a 6-year-old in the toilet; police are here.”
The girl was reportedly bleeding when the police arrived at the scene.
It was claimed the suspect was beaten up when Dros management locked him in the toilet to avoid mob justice.
Some social media users slammed the restaurant for the statement, saying it lacked empathy
A cold and heartless statement by Dros that lacks empathy with regards to the 6 year old girl that got raped in one of their restaurants this past weekend. pic.twitter.com/hsGX0XGLtN
— Aarif (@AarifMamoojee) September 26, 2018 An abysmal statement from @DrosRestaurant regarding the rape of a little girl on their property. Lacks empathy & no acknowledgment that security clearly needs to be jacked up at the premises. And you'd think they could've left their slogan out of it considering the circumstances. pic.twitter.com/utQ9Zmr474
— Lauren Hartzenberg (@Hartzenburger) September 26, 2018 Wait a minute... So @Dros_Restaurant why are you not calling a spade, a spade this was no incident but it was rape... pic.twitter.com/6JeZ3eYyUq
— Nyeusi na kiburi (@MoleheW) September 26, 2018