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Pretoria - An Atteridgeville taxi driver, found guilty of abusing his son, asked the Pretoria Regional Court on Tuesday to postpone his sentencing after he waited for hours in vain for a Venda interpreter.
The 39-year-old man, who cannot be identified to protect the identity of his son who is now 12, said he could not wait any longer as he transported children to and from school and it was past 2pm.
He had been at the court since 9am.
The man was initially charged with abuse and assault with intent to do grievous bodily harm after his two sons, then six and nine, were found with “stripe marks” on their bodies in May 2007.
He pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Earlier this year, he was found guilty of assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm on his then six-year-old son. He was acquitted of charges of assault of his other son.
In 2010, a Saulsville school principal, Rosinah Seima-Matsapola, told the court how the “stripe marks” were discovered on the six-year-old boy’s body, prompting the school to call the police.
Seima-Matsapola said the marks were discovered when an organisation visited the school to donate uniforms to poor pupils.
The boy, who was then in Grade 1, said his dad would hang him between two poles like a hammock, beating his bare back with a hosepipe for coming home from school with a dirty uniform.
The father refused to take him to hospital.
The next day the boy was hit on top of the previous day’s wounds because other children had splashed water on his white shirt.
Both boys are living with their maternal grandmother in Musina, Limpopo.
According to a pre-sentencing report, the accused maintained his innocence and claimed the boys falsely accused him. He will be sentenced next week.
Pretoria News
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