A teenage girl was shot and injured while fleeing from a man who attempted to sexually abuse her at a dam in Empandeni, Mangwe district on Sunday.
Matabeleland South Police confirmed the incident but could not provide specific details on the case.
Empandeni Ward 1 Councillor, Bernard Tshuma, who also confirmed the incident to CITE, said the girl, who is in form four at Empandeni, was in the company of her sister when they were attacked.
Cllr Tshuma said the two teenagers had gone to the dam to take pictures after knocking off from school around 4 PM.
“I was called by the Empandeni school headmistress yesterday around 4 PM telling me about the incident. I then passed through to check on the family. The girls are day scholars at the school, they stay at the cottage with their parents. They knocked off from school and around 4 PM they said they were going to the dam to take some pictures,” he said.
“While at the dam, the man pounced on them. He was wearing a red t-shirt, black pants and a black jacket and he was riding a bicycle. He started fondling one of the girls’ breasts and the other one fled. The man shouted at her to stop her from running but when she didn’t stop, he fired two shots in the air. The third shot was aimed at the girl and he injured her on the thigh.”
Cllr Tshuma said the girl is currently receiving treatment at a local clinic.
“The medical staff attending to her said the bullet tore through and came out on the other side but she will heal. The man has not yet been caught. We do hope that he is caught and justice is served. We want our environment to be safe for our children, especially the girls,” he said.
He also warned villagers to be on the lookout for the man and report to the police if they come across him.
