RAPE TRIAL: Martin
The rape trial of former City of Cape Town subcouncil manager, Raphael Martin, has been delayed yet again following ongoing issues at Mitchells Plain Regional Court.
Martin, who was also an Umkhonto we Sizwe freedom fighter, was arrested in 2020 by Strandfontein police after the then 13-year-old told her family that she had been raped for three years.
At the time, her parents said they were friends with Martin and trusted him.
In one incident, he allegedly sexually assaulted the young girl in the kitchen while her parents were in the next room and this led to her opening up to her older sister.
The City later fired Martin as a result of the ongoing case against him.
The teen’s 46-year-old mother, who may not be named, says her daughter is suffering with each postponement.
“The case was supposed to start in July 2021. Since then there have been numerous delays,” the mom says.
“First it was because the recording machines were not working. Then the court official who is supposed to sit with her in the room where she will testify from was on leave.
“They got someone else but then she informed the court she did not have transport to get there. We were supposed to start [yesterday] but the prosecutor called me to say it’s being moved to 11 May.
“She has to take off from school and all of this is making her suffer. It’s not fair.”
monique.duval@inl.co.za
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