WEEKEND ARGUS
AFTER a three-week investigation into a South African teenager’s claims that she was raped by the son of a foreign diplomat, prosecuting authorities say there is “no resonable prospect of a successful prosectuion” against the young man. And the attorney representing the young man and his family has told the Weekend Argus that they are “very pleased and very happy” about the National Prosecuting Authoritiy’s decision not to prosecute him. NPA spokesman Makhosini Nkosi yesterday released a statement confirming that the 21-year-old would not be prosecuted for the two charges or rape laid against him on New Year’s Eve. “Having considered all the statements and the evidence, the NPA has decided not to prosecute in this matter, as there is no resonable prospect of a successful prosecution,” Nkosi said. Nkosi said the NPA’s investigation had been conducted in consultation with the 17-year-old Johannesburg girl who laid charges against the diplomat’s son early on New Year’s Day. It is understood that the young woman and her father – who have been hounded by media from the diplomat’s native country – flew to Cape Town earlier this week to clarify aspects of the information she had provided to police and prosecutors about the alleged rape incidents. Reaz Khan, the Mathewson Gess attorney representing the young man, yesterday told the Weekend Argus that the man’s high-profile diplomat father had been “dissatisfied” about the naming of his son as an accused rapist in foreign media – which was done before he had even appeared in court. Under South African law, people accused of sexual crimes can only be named once they have pleaded to the charges against them.