The Wynberg Regional Court in Cape Town moved the man found guilty of killing university student Uyinene Mrwetyana’s attempted rape trial to Friday.
In 2014, Luyanda Botha was accused of trying to rape a lady who was 21 years old.
To the accusations made against him, he has entered a not guilty plea.
The allegations are related to an event that happened in June 2014 at the Athlone nursing college.
Sergeant Oscar Dada of the Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offenses (FCS) Unit took the victim’s statement and was the first to go on the witness stand.
Nothing seemed out of the norm on her face or body, despite the victim’s occasional sobbing and state of shock, according to testimony given in court.
Dada, an 18-year police veteran, found out later that the victim had visited a doctor, but he didn’t find out until 2019.
The victim’s failure to appear in court resulted in the case being removed from the court file. Despite being warned and served with a subpoena, she neglected to show up for court.
She became aware of Botha after the murder and rape of Mrwetyana made national news. She was inspired by this to return to the police station and inquire further about her case.
They reopened her case.
The victim’s documents were lost after five years, according to the testimony given in court by Dada, who went to the doctor to inquire about them.
An additional witness, a former nursing college student, was summoned by the State.
He stated in his testimony that he heard someone scream as he and a friend were walking back to the college from the stores. He noticed the victim coming in their direction.
The woman informed the two students in court that she was being kept captive in the bathtub by someone who wanted to rape her while she had a towel wrapped over her body. They searched for the offender but were unable to locate him.
