Man arrested on charges of sexually assaulting 9 boys in Maputo, Mozambique

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Man arrested on charges of sexually assaulting 9 boys in Maputo, Mozambique

2:34 CAT | 02 Nov 2016

An individual was arrested by the Police of the Republic of Mozambique in Maputo last week on suspicion of sexually abusing nine male children. None of the victims reported the abuse to their parents.

The case occurred in the Mafalala neighbourhood, and is the second case in a month. The first took place in the George Dimitrov neighbourhood, better known as Benfica.

According to one of the teenagers, the accused offered them money in exchange for his victims’ silence. “He said not to complain and gave each one of us 50 or 100 meticais. I did this many times. There were days when he asked us to go and shower with him in a group.”

Another boy said that the alleged rapist also offered them food, adding that while the abuse occurred, “the others watched, waiting for their turn”.

The accused has pleaded not guilty, and claims that the charges against him are fabricated with the intention of tarnishing his image.

According to the children’s parents, the accused would ask for some housework as a pretext. They did not hide their anger at the situation, and were critical of the children, all over 12 years of age, for failing to report what had happened to them.

“A child of five could have told what was happening, but my son went through this several times and kept quiet.

There are days when he came home acting strange and sometimes limping but when I asked what had happened he wouldn’t say anything. I do not want to believe this has happened,” one father told @Verdade.

A woman whose son was also raped said that she felt the ground disappear under her feet when she learned that the neighbour himself “used kids as his girlfriend”.

“Some weeks ago I learned that an uncle raped his nephew. I was angry and felt sorry for the child. After all, my own son also went through it. It is shocking, especially when this is done by someone who lives amongst us,” she said.

Only timely police intervention saved the alleged rapist from mob justice.

In a related case, a 17-year-old was sexually abused for several months in the George Dimitrov neighbourhood of the Mozambican capital by his uncle of more than 35 years of age. The suspect is in jail, and the victim, who is an orphan, was hospitalized for injuries resulting from repeated sexual abuse and physical attacks.

Source: A Verdade