Hospital for sex victim, 8
2004-03-18 22:55
Brakpan - An eight-year-old boy was admitted to a local hospital on Thursday after two fellow pupils allegedly severely assaulted him two days in a row last week.
Police questioned another eight-year-old for hours and he is expected to appear in court soon.
A ten-year-old, who was apparently also involved in the attacks, is missing after running away from school.
The two boys are claimed to have overpowered the young victim in the school toilets on Wednesday and Thursday and seriously sexually assaulted him.
One of the suspects is in the same class as the boy and the other in a higher grade.
The victim was so severely assaulted that he has not been able to attend school since.
He complained to his mother on Monday that "his buttocks were sore and that he did not feel well". He did not tell his parents what had happened.
His mother said on Thursday that initially they thought he had piles and took him to a doctor on Wednesday afternoon.
Terrified to tell his parents
"However, the doctor said it was much worse than piles. When we arrived home, he told his father what had happened.
"He said he was afraid to tell us, because he was threatened that he would be killed if he spoke about what happened at school."
The hospital was still conducting tests on Thursday afternoon to determine the extent of the boy's injuries.
The mother said: "My child is in such pain that he had to be examined while under anaesthetic.
"There is a strong possibility that he will need an operation, but we will know only on Friday how serious his injuries are."