Iuze Mukube
A Windhoek teacher, accused of allegedly raping a 13-year-old boy, told Magistrate Linus Samunzala yesterday that he was assaulted by members of the special fields force while in custody on Tuesday.
Rohan Bezuidenhout (27) appeared in the Windhoek Magistrate’s Court yesterday for the continuation of his bail hearing.
He said that during the officers’ alleged search of a missing tracksuit pants, besides himself, other inmates or detainees were also assaulted.
He added that he was forced to do frog jumps and was later struck on the back of his head and thrown to the ground.
Beside the physical assault, his defence lawyer, Jorge Neves, stated on his behalf that he was verbally abused, with officers reportedly saying, “white man, what noise are you making, you f**** mof***”.
Neves added that his client’s blankets were stolen, along with his medication, which he had to contact his parents to replace.
“Such unlawful behaviour is unexpected in a constitutional and democratic society,” stated the lawyer.
He added that this sort of action was reminiscent of previous dispersal, where there was no respect for human dignity or integrity.
Bezuidenhout is facing two counts of rape.
The State alleges that he raped a boy (13) at a high school hostel in the capital, between May and July last year, where he was the hostel superintendent.
It is also alleged that Bezuidenhout abused his power or authority over the complainant when the alleged offences were committed.
At the time of his first court appearance in May, the State objected to granting of bail due to the seriousness of the charges the accused is facing and the risk that he will interfere with State witnesses or flee if he is released on bail.
During the proceedings yesterday, the State, represented by public prosecutor Rowan van Wyk, stated that he is ready to proceed with the bail application.
He requested a postponement of the trial to make way for investigation results.
The postponement is because the complainant is emotionally unbalanced and suffers from post-traumatic disorder, which could have a significant effect on him giving reliable evidence.
Van Wyk said this part of the investigations, which is not yet before court, could influence the progression of the matter.