Eldorado Park girl, 4, dies after alleged rape and assault by father

The Star

7 days ago

A four-year-old girl from Eldorado Park has died from injuries sustained in a brutal assault, allegedly at the hands of her father.
The father, who was initially charged with attempted murder, now faces a murder charge, while the girl's mother has also been arrested for allegedly defeating the ends of justice. The death has sent shockwaves through the community.
The child was still on life support on yesterday when her father appeared in the Protea Magistrate's Court on charges of attempted murder, rape of a minor, and child abuse.
She died later that evening and the father is now facing a murder and an additional rape charge, Gauteng police spokesperson Mavela Masondo confirmed. He is set to return to court on August 12 for a formal bail application.
"Police can confirm that the four-year-old child has died in hospital. The case docket has been changed to murder and an additional charge of rape has been added," he said.
This incident is drawing a painful comparison to the Jayden-Lee Meek case, raising urgent questions about a pattern of violence and the protection of children in the community.
The 11-year-old Jayden-Lee's mother, Tiffany Meek, has been charged with his murder.
The two cases, unfolding in separate Joburg neighbourhoods, have reignited national anger and raised urgent questions about accountability - not only in policing, but in the homes and streets where these children were left unprotected.
According to police, the man was arrested after officers responded to reports of screams coming from a backyard shack.
Inside, they discovered the young girl with severe head injuries, bruises, and a swollen eye. It has been revealed that she is now fighting for her life at Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital.
Ward 18 Councillor Juwairiya Kaldine, who rushed to the scene after receiving a call from a concerned resident, described the disturbing images in conversation with the Saturday Star .
'When I arrived, it was a gruesome scene, a bath filled with bloody clothes and paper towels soaked in blood,' Kaldine recalled.
'I immediately instructed that the property be secured and went straight to Eldorado Park police station to report it.'
Kaldine spoke visited the hospital, where she saw the little girl on life support.
'When I got to the hospital, I had the privilege of seeing our little fighter lying in trauma, fighting for her life on life support. And I am saying that we don't have a community that is angry enough with what has transpired. We have a community that is keeping the government of today accountable. We do not have a community that says enough with Eldorado Park police station incompetence; they lay down in our communities. They should be enforcing the law, but instead they are enforcing incompetence, and they show it daily. The general was in Eldorado Park for Operation Shanela, and we made grounds, and we said, 'We are willing to work with Eldorado SAPS; we are willing to work with any member of the law enforcement and ensure that the lawlessness in Eldorado stops.' And we are able to work and combat crime together, and here we are. I am saying today that I never thought this would happen in my community. I never thought that we would wake up and have to go to a crime scene of a 4-year-old little girl,' she said.
Anti-drug activist and Member of Parliament Dereleen James said the tragedy reflects deeper, ongoing failures.
'This keeps happening every week, the same trauma, the same statements, the same outrage on social media, and then nothing changes,' said James.
'We have to stop being afraid to confront those who harm our children. Too many people saw and heard what was happening, but fear kept them quiet. Now a child is fighting for her life.'
She further stressed that it is not only law enforcement that is failing, but also communities and families themselves.
Masondo confirmed that officers responded on Wednesday, 6 August, to a complaint of a father assaulting his child.
'Upon entering the shack, they found a man with a little girl and a little boy. The girl had visible head injuries and bruises. The man who introduced himself as the father of the children could not give a clear explanation of what happened to the girl. The police arrested the father and rushed the girl to a nearby medical care centre for treatment. The father was later charged with attempted murder and child abuse. Further information by the Family Violence, Child Protection, and Sexual Offences Unit led to the arrest of the mother of the victim, who was charged with defeating the ends of justice,' Masondo said.
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Saturday Star