ZIMBABWE – A 37-year-old man from Bulawayo’s Nkulumane suburb has been arrested on allegations of raping his 17-year-old daughter.

The man, who has not been named to protect the identity of the victim, reportedly raped his daughter on 6 September 2022 at around 1 PM when the two were alone at home.

Allegations are that the victim was at home cooking when his father came out of his bedroom, and grabbed her waist and carried her into his bedroom.

She reportedly screamed for help, but no one came to her rescue.

The father allegedly closed the bedroom door and raped her once and left the house.

He was, however, spotted leaving the bedroom by the victim’s cousin aged 11 who had just arrived home.

She then discovered that the victim was sobbing inside her father’s bedroom.

The cousin then went next door and informed their neighbour who came and asked the girl why she was crying.

The victim narrated the sexual abuse, and the neighbour called the child’s aunt and then accompanied the her to make a report to the police leading to the arrest of her father.

Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) spokesperson in Bulawayo Province, Inspector Abednico Ncube confirmed the incident and implored parents to protect their children instead of abusing them. He said:

It is disturbing that most cases of a sexual nature on juveniles are perpetrated by very close relatives. Parents must protect their children and not be the ones exposing them to abuse.

Members of the public are urged not to trust anyone. In this case a trusted biological father raped his daughter.