BULTFONTEIN – A 29-year-old man from Bultfontein in the Free State is expected to appear before the Bultfontein Magistrate’s Court today – Tuesday – in connection with the alleged murder and rape of a seven-year-old girl child. This followed his arrest on Sunday after the lifeless body of the child was found underneath the bed in a shack dwelling in Phahameng township.

Captain Loraine Earle, provincial spokesperson for the police, said the suspect faces charges of murder and rape following the preliminary investigation.

“On Sunday, police were summoned to a scene of murder in Phahameng location, Bultfontein. On their arrival, they were directed to a shack. There, they discovered the motionless body of the minor female victim. The victim was found with her pants pulled down and injuries on her neck. She was declared dead by emergency medical services personnel,” said Earle.

Earle said according to information received, the deceased was discovered by her 14-year-old sister, who saw a hand sticking out from underneath the bed. “She immediately alerted her father, who was in the main house. Police were then called to the scene following the discovery. Preliminary investigations were immediately conducted, and the suspect was traced to a nearby farm. He was subsequently arrested for murder and rape,” said Earle, adding that investigation was going into the allege rape and child death.