A group of seven men of Mpolonjeni have been arrested after they lured an alleged bisexual man into a house and proceeded to assault him with sticks.
The group of men accused the complainant of introducing young men into homosexuality by paying them money for spending a night with him.
The alleged assault happened at one of the accused’s house where the man was lured into.
The accused, namely Nkosingiphile Ndzabandzaba (27), Mduduzi Mondlane (27), Simiso Makama (26), Machawe Malinga (24), Phumuzo Maphalala (26), Caliso Nkwanyana (26) and Sonkhe Mngometulu (24) appeared before Principal Magistrate Musa Nxumalo while facing a charge of assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.
They are said to have acted jointly and assaulted the man by hitting him with a sjambok, fists and open hands. The complainant sustained serious injuries. The incident happened mid-May at Mpolonjeni. Prior to the matter being brought to the Magistrate’s Court, the matter was also discussed at Mpolonjeni Umphakatsi.
According to statements attached to the matter, the group of men planned to attack the complainant as they accused him of strategically introducing young men to homosexuality.
They claimed that the complainant would pay young men from the area to convince them to spend a night at his home where he would proceed to make sexual advances.
On the day of the attack, one of the accused allegedly lured the complainant to come to his house. He is alleged to have told the complainant that he would also like to spend a night with him so that he could pay him money in return. While the complainant was on his way, the six men hid under the bed, preparing for an ambush.
The accused eventually pounced on the unsuspecting complainant after he had arrived at the house. They are alleged to have severely assaulted him, causing him injuries all over the body.
Each of the accused indicated his intention to plead guilty after they were asked how they intended to plead.
The Crown, which was represented by prosecutor Sisho Magagula, filed an application to have the matter postponed to a later date pending trial.
The accused were admitted to bail at E1,000 each. The matter was ordered to return to court next Tuesday.
