GUTTED: Langa residents upset with authorities
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Joseph Losi Nthethe, the man accused of raping a 15-year-old intellectually-challenged minor from Langa has been released on R1 000.
According to the grandma of the 15-year-old victim, she was allegedly raped by two men on two separate occasions who live in the same block of flats in Langa.
Both accused were to appear in the Bishop Lavis Magistrate Court on Friday.
The ouma said that the first rape took place on 27 August 2024.
The man accused is Luyanda Nkomiyaphi, who is behind bars. He failed to appear in court as he reportedly fell ill while in prison. His case has been postponed for a bail application.
The second rape occurred on Thursday, 27 March 2025 allegedly by Nthethe.
The grandmother explains: “This guy [Joseph] was standing outside the block of flats where he lived, and my grandchild was on her way to her aunt’s house when she passed there.
"He called her and told her to buy a cold drink, then when she came back, he took her, closed the door and raped her.”
Nthethe was arrested and charged with rape.
However, on Friday he was granted R1 000 bail and a protection order has been issued against him. His next court appearance is scheduled for 20 May 2025.
This has left the community of Langa upset who took to the streets on Wednesday marching for no bail for the alleged rapists.
Anele Gqasana, the Chairperson of Langa GBVF Stakeholder Forum said they are not happy with the decision as this is not the only rape case they are dealing with in the community of Langa.
Gqasana says: “I am devastated and as a community we are so sad. It is an injustice to the community, the victim and the people at large. The justice system is just failing us even in the way they did things by calling the victim to face the perpetrator.
"The victim was so scared, literally shaking. How is it that a man accused of rape is out so easily?
"He did not even show any remorse. He stood proud like someone who did nothing wrong.
"We are very unhappy about the outcome of this case. We do not want Losi in our community, we cannot have a monster in our community. We cannot live like this.
"We are mobilising for No Bail application to ensure that justice is served and the community is prioritised. We will continue to stand with the families and call for justice to be served.”