A man has been arrested in connection with the rape and assault of a 15-year-old girl in eMaxesibeni on Good Friday, during which her eyes were gouged out.
Eastern Cape police said the arrest of the 23-year-old man was a breakthrough in the case.
The girl was on her way home when a man dragged her into nearby bushes and raped her at around 14:00 last Friday.
“It is also alleged that the suspect did not end there but continued to stab her on her upper body which resulted in her losing her sight.”
She stumbled out of the bush onto a road where she collapsed before villagers discovered her at around 15:00.
The suspect had been charged with rape and assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm following his arrest on Thursday, police said.
He is scheduled to appear in the Mount Ayliff Magistrate’s Court on Monday.
Eastern Cape police commissioner Lieutenant-General Nomthetheleli Mene welcomed the arrest.
“This arrest should be viewed as one of our ongoing efforts to end the scourge of violence against women and children in this province.
“We acknowledge that the girl is injured and in great pain, but we console ourselves with the fact that a suspect linked to the crime has been arrested to answer in court,” said Mene in a statement on Friday.