A 10-year-old boy told police he had to have sex with his cousins, and when he complained his grandfather said he should “be a man and not a moffie”, the Pretoria Magistrate’s Court was told on Thursday.
The evidence was read from a forensic assessment of the boy at the bail hearing of his 31-year-old mother, one of nine people accused of a string of child pornography and related charges.
Prosecutor Brandon Lawrence, reading from the forensic report, quoted the boy saying he had to have vaginal and anal sex with his cousins. The boy told his interviewer he also had to perform oral sex.
“I wanted to vomit, but Oupa said I must be a man and not a moffie (homosexual).”
The 31-year old woman said her family was close, but did not know where the information in the forensic report came from. She denied any abuse took place. She said that she and her husband had blue movies, but these had been hidden out of her son’s reach. Lawrence told the court the boy described his father as “a bad daddy” and his mother as “not actually a bad person”.
He said the woman knew what was happening, but according to her son did not do anything to stop the abuse, and on one occasion operated a camera.
The bail application was being heard by magistrate Pierre Wessels.
No fair hearing
Originally the woman had opposed having Wessels hear her bail application. Her lawyer Chris Greyvenstein had claimed she would not receive a fair hearing because Wessels had already denied her eight co-accused bail. However, on March 8 the High Court in Pretoria ruled Wessels had conducted the proceedings properly so far and that the application had no merit.
The woman is believed to be the wife of accused number eight, and was arrested near Hammanskraal in January.
The group face charges of rape, indecent assault, sexual grooming of children and possession, manufacturing and distribution of child pornography.
The eight arrested last year include a grandfather (58), grandmother (57), their two sons from previous relationships, aged 34 and 36, the grandfather’s brother (61) and his wife (42), and their son, who is reportedly mentally disabled. The 26-year-old wife of one of the sons was also arrested.
Six children, aged four and older, were allegedly used in sex movies which were then distributed.
Four other children were removed from the care of the accused and sent for psychological and medical tests.
During the bail applications in January, the court heard the State was investigating the possibility of a connection with a child pornography syndicate.
The woman’s bail hearing continues on March 24.
The woman’s eight co-accused are expected to appear in the Pretoria North Magistrate’s Court on April 6, when it is expected that a decision will be made on whether to send the case to the regional court. — Sapa