An investigating team consisting of various Police units in Klerksdorp have successfully apprehended a 30-year-old serial rapist on Friday, 19 June.
According to information made available at this stage, reports suggest that a 27-year-old victim was befriended by the suspect via Facebook. They also had conversations on WhatsApp upon which the victim agreed to meet with the suspect in the evening on Saturday, 30 May at a grocery store in Klerksdorp.
The suspect, who allegedly pretended to be a pastor, met with the victim as agreed and ultimately took her to an open field behind the Technical High School. The victim was eventually threatened with a knife, raped and robbed of her personal belongings.
In another unrelated incident in Ventersdorp, a 29-year-old victim also met the suspect via Facebook. They allegedly arranged to meet in the afternoon on Thursday, 7 November 2019 at Boikhutso Village. Subsequently, the suspect allegedly took the victim to an open field where he threatened her with a knife and raped her. She too was robbed of her personal belongings.
Investigations into the matter are continuing and police say they cannot rule out the possibility of linking the suspect to other cases.
The team consisting of the Klerksdorp Family Violence Unit, Child Protection and Sexual Offences (FCS) Unit and the Provincial Organised Crime Unit, was applauded by the Provincial Commissioner of North West, Lieutenant General Sello Kwena, for their diligence which resulted in the arrest.
The public has been urged to exercise extreme caution when honouring initial appointments with potential friends, especially after meeting them through social media. Furthermore, discouraging individuals not to meet strangers alone for the first time, but at public places where there are people who can protect one from harm.
