In a surprise turn of events, the man who pleaded guilty to the rape of an 82-year-old woman has had his plea amended to not guilty.
|||Pietermaritzburg - In a surprise turn of events, the man who pleaded guilty to the rape of an 82-year-old Wartburg woman has had his plea amended to not guilty.
Acting Judge Igna Stretch made the amendment because the elements of his plea did not correspond to the charge.
The State charged 25-year-old Avelo Tuswa with rape with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.
While Tuswa is admitting to the rape, he denies that he intended to cause the woman physical injury, and so a mini-trial began in the Pietermaritzburg High Court yesterday for the State to attempt to prove that Tuswa is, in fact, guilty of the crime of rape with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.
Testifying yesterday, New Hanover district surgeon Nithiya Naidoo said this was the worst case of rape he had seen in his 40 years of practice.
Naidoo examined the woman hours after she was attacked by Tuswa in her home in Wartburg on July 28.
The most significant injury was a deep vaginal tear, 4cm in length and 1.5cm in width.
“The degree of force that this man must have used to cause this injury would have been great,” he said.
Defence advocate Kelvin Singh said he would not be calling any witnesses.
Daily News