Man kidnaps, rapes ex-girlfriend for 5 days

A 27-YEAR-OLD woman from Cowdray Park suburb in Bulawayo was allegedly kidnapped and held captive for five days by her ex-boyfriend who repeatedly raped her while she was on her monthly periods.

Kudakwashe Antony Mapwevo (27) of New Lobengula suburb yesterday appeared before magistrate Mr Chrispen Mberewere charged with four counts of malicious damage to property, assault, rape and unlawful detention.

He pleaded not guilty and was remanded him in custody to April 12 for sentencing.

The court heard how Mapwevo allegedly tortured and starved his ex-girlfriend, who cannot be named for ethical reasons, during the ordeal which happened on January 11 this year.

He is also alleged to have escaped from the police by feigning illness after he was arrested for stoning the woman's neighbours, who had restrained him from kidnapping the woman's younger sister.

Prosecuting Mr Busani Moyo said on January 11, Mapwevo allegedly sent a message to the complainant, via her grandmother's phone, asking to meet her.

During cross examination, the victim's brother told the court that Mapwevo had threatened to kill his grandmother if she did not tell him where the woman was.

"Mapwevo arrived around 7PM demanding to see my sister. He told my grandmother that he was going to kill her or take my younger sister who is doing Grade Seven if she did not produce my sister. He became violent threatening to kill us until the neighbours intervened," said the victim`s brother.

"Mapwevo fought running battles with our neighbours for about four hours until the police came and arrested him. On the following day I was summoned by police and when I arrived at Luveve Police Station I found an ambulance taking Mapwevo to the hospital."

The victim's brother said police told him Mapwevo was critically ill.

"To my surprise, when I returned home after an hour, I found him dragging my sister away. I just watched because my policy is not to intervene in issues involving two people."

Mr Moyo said Mapwevo grabbed his ex-girlfriend's phone and smashed it against a wall before forcing her to go to his house in New Lobengula.

"He force-marched her into the house where he held her hostage until January 17, depriving her of her right to freedom of movement," said the prosecutor.

Mr Moyo said Mapwevo raped the complainant numerous times after forcing her into the house.

"The accused person had sex with the complainant from January 12 to January 17 without her consent. The complainant told the accused person that she had started her menstrual periods and this did not go down well with him and he started to assault the complainant with fists in the face and she sustained a cut on the lower lip," he said.

He would allegedly force the woman to take a bath after each sex attack and rape her again.

Mr Moyo said Mapwevo was arrested when the victim's grandmother enlisted the help of police officers to raid his home. When the police finally rescued the woman, her face was swollen and she had bruises all over her body.

She had also allegedly lost weight. The victim was referred to hospital and a medical report will be produced in court as evidence. In his defence, Mapwevo said: "I didn`t kidnap her. We were in love and we agreed to go to my home for sex".