The State revealed that the officer accused of raping a detainee has tried to have sex with inmates before.
During the bail application of Constable Siyabonga Mbane on Thursday, prosecutor Litha Duka said the accused had been caught by his ex-wife kissing a woman in police custody.
The couple had been going for mediation after he allegedly assaulted his wife in 2021.
Reading the affidavit of the investigating officer Patrick Takayi, Duka said: “He forcefully demanded sexual intercourse from a woman in the police cells.
“He was on duty when he called his wife and asked her to visit him at work as he wanted to speak to her at the police station.
“When she arrived she caught the accused kissing an inmate. He was drinking while on duty and requested to have sex with the wife in the cell, she refused.
“He then told her if she didn’t want to, then he would have sex with the inmate, who refused.
“The station commander was called by the inmates because the accused wanted to get into their cells. He was found to be smelling of alcohol and the station commander booked him off duty. The inmate reported the case but it was provisionally withdrawn and the victim was untraceable.”
The State alleges that on 29 November, while the complainant in the most recent case was in custody at Mfuleni police station between midnight and 4.30am, the 26-year-old detainee raped her in an empty cell.
The State explained: “He came to take her out of the cell with seven other inmates and to an empty cell and he then raped her by inserting his penis into her vagina. The accused said he would pay bail money for the complainant. He then urged her to cooperate with the investigating officer in her matter as she was facing a serious offence.
“The complainant described the accused’s underwear, which was subsequently confiscated.”
The State said the accused was interrupted during the rape.
But in his affidavit, the accused said: “She was crying in the cell, the female officer I was on duty with asked me to bring the complainant to her.
“She then said she is a student and didn’t want fingerprints to be taken. The complainant returned to her cell.
“At 3am, she was crying again and she asked me to take her out of the cell. We went to the empty cell and I consoled her.
“The complainant then initiated intimacy by kissing me and the rest followed. I realised when we were done that she had other ulterior motives as she asked me to make a plan as she didn’t want her fingerprints to be taken.
“We were not disturbed by any officer during the incident as the medical reports would prove that I finished.”
The judgment for the bail application will be heard on Thursday.