A KwaZulu-Natal man accused of raping his 10-year-old stepdaughter 900 times, is to spend the festive season behind bars after the Verulam Magistrate's Court postponed his case for a month.
The 43-year-old man, who cannot be named to protect the identity of the victim, was arrested on June 11.
When he appeared in court on Thursday, Legal Aid representative Mondli Mthethwa, argued that the case was dragging on for too long.
"He was arrested in early June and has been in custody quite some time. We do not want another postponement."
However, despite Mthethwa's objections, the case was postponed to January 11 for further investigation, which included the gathering of witness statements.
READ: Verulam man allegedly raped stepdaughter 900 times from 2013 to 2018, court hears
The State is also expected to decide if the trial should be held in the regional court.
It is alleged that the accused raped the child from 2013 to 2018.
He has been charged with rape, sexual grooming of children and exposure or display of or causing exposure or display of child pornography or pornography to children.
Additional charges include assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm, compelling or causing children to witness sexual acts, and child abuse or deliberate neglect of a child.
Verulam residents beat him severely after the rape allegations emerged. The child's mother died five years ago.
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