Lawyer wants rape complainant to testify again

Tonga - The trial of an Mpumalanga man accused of raping a 15-year-old girl has been postponed to next month to allow his defence lawyer to submit new facts in the case.

The accused, Nation Sicwayiso Silombo, from Mbuzini village near the Swazi and Mozambican border, pleaded not guilty to a charge of rape when he appeared in the Boschfontein Regional Court on Wednesday, a Sapa correspondent reported.

Previously, Silombo's Legal Aid attorney Xolani Mahlalela told the court that his client pleaded not guilty because he was in a relationship with the complainant.

Mahlalela asked the court to allow him to present new facts to State prosecutor Thulani Msibi before the next court appearance.

He said he would also request that the complainant, who had already testified, should be called to take the stand again.

"There is an issue of a cellphone conversation between my client and the victim, which I want to use to prove that they were really in a relationship," said Mahlalela.

Magistrate Edgar Moletsane granted the request and postponed the case to 4 February for further trial.