WATCH | 'We will moer him': Cape taxi operators threaten second beating for rape accused

Delft residents are gatvol of rapists, and they want a man arrested for allegedly raping a 14-year-old girl to remain behind bars. 

The man, a “gartjie” (taxi fee collector), was caught by community members and taxi operators after being identified as the suspect. He was badly beaten and hospitalised, delaying his appearance in court. 

He is due to appear on Wednesday and the community wants him denied bail.  

 The mother of the girl who was raped, who spoke to TimesLIVE Video, says she is devastated.

The girl was travelling from the Bellville area to Delft and allegedly asked for help from the man, who led her to a taxi. The two were dropped off in a bushy area and the girl was raped. 

After the incident she managed to escape with the help of community members.

“She saw a house light on and started screaming. [When] people came out to help her she ran into the house,” she said.  

The girl's mother is concerned that the driver of the taxi was not also arrested. 

“I’m thinking he must also be arrested because he was the one driving, there is no feedback on that ... I don’t think they even went to Bellville to find out who the driver was,” she said.

Western Cape police said they were still investigating the case and did not rule out the possibility of making another arrest. 

Taxi operators who spoke to TimesLIVE Premium said they caught the man after his picture was circulated among them. 

They said the entire association was tainted by his actions. 

“If you steal by us, we make a good example of you. We beat you. But now rape, that is not right,” said taxi operator Jackie Hector. “My child is 13 years old. Here on our route, if you steal or you take something out of a van, we beat you. He's a gartjie here in Eerste River. He must come out, we are waiting for him here. We're going to make a nice example of him,” he added.

Others chimed in while he was speaking, agreeing on this approach.

Meanwhile the Western Cape police have warned against residents taking the law into their own hands. 

“The community knows there are definite channels for contacting the police. We maintain that when we got the call we responded and we arrested the suspect. We cannot confirm who was responsible for the assault,” said Western Cape police spokesperson W/O Joseph Swartbooi. 

The man will appear in the Blue Downs magistrate's court on Wednesday, November 9.