Durban - Police have warned security companies not to take the law into their own hands as the bail application of a stepfather accused of raping his 10-year-old stepdaughter got under way this week.
Reaction Unit South Africa (Rusa), the security company that arrested the stepfather, 43, from Verulam, was lambasted by his attorney for alleged assault.
The man has laid criminal charges against Rusa staff who arrested him last month.
The man, who cannot be named to protect the identity of the child, and because he has not pleaded to the charges, was denied bail in the Verulam Family Court on Friday.
Following a three-day application, magistrate Irfaan Khalil said there was a likelihood the man would evade trial and intimidate the child if released.
The state alleged the man raped the little girl at least 900 times since 2013 after her mother died.
Prosecutor San Bhartu said the girl claimed in an interview she had been raped every second day.
Other charges include sexual grooming, exposure of a child to pornography, sexual assault, and child neglect.
In the dock, the suspect still had open wounds on his arms and limped as he walked to the court holding cells.
His Legal Aid attorney, Mondli Mthethwa, has been using the alleged assault by Rusa officers and community members to weaken the state’s case, reminding the court that his client had the right to be presumed innocent.
Police spokesperson, Nqobile Gwala, confirmed the suspect had opened a case of common assault and grievous bodily harm.
Following his arrest, a video went viral on social media showing the suspect, dressed in overalls, being assaulted and tasered by men in black uniforms.
The suspect is seen quivering on the ground as one person boots his groin and another shocks his neck.
Rusa owner Prem Balram said he could not identify any of the officers yet as Rusa members - the video had been sent to forensic services to verify its authenticity.
“We are grateful the suspect has been denied bail. We heard in court that he had threatened Rusa officers in an interview with police. I have since spoken to our members, cautioning them when apprehending suspects,” he said.
As Mthethwa grilled the state’s first witness, Warrant Officer Nevarge Lutchminarain, in court, he laid more blame on Rusa.
“RUSA tried to cover up the assault. They tried to hide and make this a big case,” Mthethwa said.
The suspect was apprehended on June 11 by Rusa and handed to police with evidence obtained at the suspect’s shack.
Gwala reminded the public that only police officials could make arrests.
“The security guards and members of the community can apprehend the suspects and hand the suspects to the police. They must always remember not to take the law into their own hands,” she said.
A similar method of weakening the state’s case was used during the bail application of the man accused of murdering Durban North woman Siam Lee.
The 20-year-old Crawford College pupil’s body was found charred in an abandoned field in the Midlands in January.
A 30-year-old man, who cannot be named as he is facing rape charges in another case, has since been arrested and charged with murdering Lee.
The man’s defence lawyer, Martin Krog, said in a bail application his client had been assaulted when private investigators apprehended him.