Rape trial of illegal immigrant delayed

Tonga - The trial of an illegal immigrant accused of raping a six-year-old girl in Mpumalanga could not start on Tuesday because his case had not been transferred to a regional court.

The 20-year-old man, who cannot be named as he has not pleaded yet, lives in Naas township, but originally comes from Mozambique, a Sapa correspondent reported.

When he appeared in the Tonga Magistrate's Court on Tuesday, magistrate Hazel Khoza remanded him in custody until 29 August for a trial date to be set.

Previously, senior magistrate Sam Nkuna stopped the bail application when the investigating officer testified that the accused had arrived in the country from Mozambique in December last year.

Nkuna said it would be a waste of the court's time to continue with the bail application since the accused was an illegal immigrant.

The man was arrested on 22 March this year, two days after the girl was raped.