Man accused of raping girl while on parole claims DNA experts made mistake

Edgar Ndlovu, who is accused of raping a nine-year-old girl while he was out on parole for another rape case, has denied any involvement in the matter.

Kimberley - A Galashewe man accused of raping a nine-year-old girl while he was out on parole for another rape case, has denied any involvement in the matter.

Edgar Ndlovu, 45, took to the witness stand in the Northern Cape High Court on Tuesday to testify in his rape trial.

He is accused of raping the minor child in an open veld behind the Galeshewe police station on January 17, 2019.

It is alleged that Ndlovu saw the girl in an open veld in Santa Square and asked her to go to a tuck shop with him. He apparently took her to Shoprite instead, whereafter he told her she must go with him to the home of a woman who would assist him to withdraw money at the ATM. He allegedly took the girl to an open veld behind the police station and took off her shorts and underwear and raped her.

The accused apparently threatened the girl with a knife during the incident.

The girl suffered a serious injury, with a tear stretching from her vagina to her anus, due to the rape and had to undergo surgery to try and repair the damage to her body.

Ndlovu was arrested on April 25, 2019. He was at the time out on parole for an unrelated rape case which took place in Postmasburg. He was later sentenced to 10 years for the Postmasburg rape matter.

Ndlovu said he was not responsible for the rape of the minor child as he had a strict curfew during his parole.

“I was on parole at the time that the incident took place and had to be home by 10pm. The gate to the house was also locked at that time. I had to report my whereabouts to my mother as well as to my parole officer,” said Ndlovu, disputing the incident which is said to have happened at about 8pm on that night.

Advocate Keageleste Ilanga, representing the State, argued that the accused was on the street prior to his 10pm curfew.

Ilanga told Ndlovu that his DNA profile, which was retrieved from the rape case he was on parole for, positively linked him to the current matter.

“Your DNA from the Postmasburg case positively linked you to this rape case. You were on parole for that matter and your DNA profile popped out in this matter, yet you claim your innocence,” she said.

Ndlovu said that the fact that his DNA was linked to this matter was possibly as a result of a mistake.

“There is a possibility that there might be a mistake in how the DNA experts conducted their research because I do not know how my DNA ended up inside the complainant. I have no knowledge of the crime that I am being accused of,” he said.

Forensic evidence revealed in court showed that DNA samples taken from the girl were compared against a reference sample from the accused and positively linked Ndlovu to the matter.

The case was postponed for closing arguments.