Dros restaurant rape: Witnesses share harrowing details of what they saw

It's been one week since the Dros restaurant rape of a seven-year-old girl took place in Pretoria, and the South African public have been shocked to their core by this heinous crime.

One man is in custody and faces trial on Tuesday 2 October for raping the youngster. However, due to the circumstances of this case, the accused's name and identity cannot be revealed until he enters his plea inside a courtroom.

This secrecy has seen the rumour mill pushed into overdrive, and often delve into illegal territory. Social media users were quick to identify the defendant, without realising it could jeopardise the prosecution's case. If you want to get acquainted with the legal intricacies, be our guests.

However, customers and employees at the Pretoria Dros have lifted the lid on the events of the day in question. Speaking to Netwerk24 s Rapport, several eyewitnesses have revealed what they saw on that day. This is what they allege went down.

Dros restaurant rape: Eyewitness accounts of what happened The alleged rapist is said to have been sitting at the bar, where he racked up a R700 tab and was joined by an older gentleman. This would go a long way towards contradicting his claims from a video shared last week, where he claimed to be sober.

His route to the bathroom included walking past the children's play area, where the victim spent most of the afternoon. On his second bathroom break , the mother of the seven-year-old noticed her child was missing. She went to search for her but didn't check one of the broken cubicles.

It was only when the restaurant staff conducted a search that the child was discovered. One waitress described seeing the feet of the accused, which obviously looked out of place in the women's bathroom.

When the alarm was raised, a child could be heard crying in that same stall. The mother and four waitresses tried to burst the door down, but the defendant allegedly attacked them with a belt, before storming past them and hiding in the men's bathroom.

One employee described finding the seven-year-old's blood-stained panties in the toilet, along with the man's red shirt. It's believed he tried to flush them, to dispose of the evidence.

Several patrons then forced their way into the men's bathroom where he was hiding, before physically attacking the suspect. He was bloodied and battered before security personnel managed to break up the apoplectic customers looking to exact their revenge.

After more heated verbal exchanges, the police were called and the accused was held in custody.

How has the Dros restaurant rape suspect defended himself? Finally, we've already heard part of this guy's defence in that now-infamous viral video, but more information has come to light about why exactly he followed a young girl into the bathroom.

According to one Dros employee, the 20-year-old accused maintained he was helping to clean her up after she had pooed . However, there is much to be suspicious of with this reasoning. The defendant was found completely naked after the girl's ordeal.

With all being well on Tuesday, we will be able to lift the lid on the suspect's name following his scheduled court appearance. Until then, anonymity remains in place.

Tags: crimePretoriarapeRestaurant

LINK:	https://www.thesouthafrican.com/dros-restaurant-rape-what-happened/...
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