Uncle, 72, defiles niece, 5, arrested
By George Zulu
A 72-YEAR-OLD man of Mazabuka District in Southern Province has been arrested for allegedly defiling his five-year-old niece.
The man of Namalundu Village in Chief Naluama’s chiefdom of Chikankata District was arrested a few days ago after his family tried to protect him.
Police sources close to the investigations say the family of the child was aware of the defilement of the five-year-old child but kept silent about the incident.
“It is unfortunate that the family of the victim decided to hide the crime in a bid to protect the old man. And it has been happening for some time now, though some family members say it only happened twice. The old man is in police cells. This is a very sad development, and as police, we are waiting for the report from the Department of Social Welfare on the safety of the baby girl,” the source, who asked not to be named because they were not authorised to speak to the media, told The Mast.
And Southern Province commissioner of police Auxensio Daka confirmed the arrest of the 72-year-old man whose name remains anonymous to protect the identity of the child.
Daka said the suspect was arrested last week.
He said the victim’s family was aware of the sexual abuse but had opted not to report it to the police, citing the suspect’s advanced age and a desire to protect him.
Daka said the sexual molestation was only reported to have happened between September 18 and 20 at Namalundu Village.
“Upon receiving the information of the defilement of a five-year-old child, police officers proceeded to apprehend the suspect,” he said.
Daka said the suspect had since been detained, and investigations into the matter were ongoing.
