A Form three pupil from a Tsholotsho school has been arrested for raping a schoolmate, police confirmed.
The suspect, whose name was withheld for ethical reasons, allegedly dragged the 14-year-old Form one girl into a storeroom and raped her once before fleeing from the scene.
The complainant narrated the ordeal to the school matron who then reported the matter to the police.
Matabeleland North police spokesperson Assistant Inspector Christopher Mahohoma said police managed to arrest the suspect who was released into the custody of the school head as investigations continue.
“Police in Tsholotsho has arrested a form three male student (17) on 21 November 2022 in connection with a case of rape where a female juvenile (14) was raped.
“On the 19th day of November 2022, the victim went into her form one classroom looking for her missing Ndebele textbook. She found the suspect seated on top of a desk alone and did not mind his presence as she continued with the search of her textbook,” said the police.
It is alleged that during the process the suspect stood up, grabbed the girl by her T-shirt and dragged her into a classroom storeroom which was not locked where he then raped her once.
After the act, the suspect fled from the scene.
The incident comes in the wake of a number of cases of sexual abuse of minors in most cases by adults, some of them relatives.
One of the cases is that of a Tsholotsho nine-year-old girl who recently gave birth in Bulawayo after falling pregnant under unclear circumstances as the person responsible is not yet known.
