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Melody Baya, Court Reporter
THE trial of a 63-year-old man from Bulawayo’s Emakhandeni suburb who allegedly raped his 16-year-old granddaughter continued yesterday with the girl’s cousin telling a court he saw a video recording of the half naked man begging the girl for sex.

The grandfather allegedly sent the girl’s cousin to the city centre to buy HIV medication for him, while he remained raping the girl.

“I know nothing about what transpired on the day. I was sent to the pharmacy to buy some pills in the morning by my grandfather and so I left my cousin in his company,” the cousin said.

“I also recall the video which she showed me. In the video I saw my grandfather pants down asking to sleep with my cousin who was refusing”.

The girl’s grandmother told the court the complainant was indecently dressed and lured her grandfather into having sex with her.

The grandmother, who testified before regional magistrate Mark Dzira, said the way the girl dressed left a lot to be desired.

“In the week we stayed with the girl, I observed that she sometimes didn’t properly dress. She didn’t dress like a proper woman. One time she wore a short skirt and a top which left her stomach uncovered,” she said.

She said on the day of the alleged rape she was not at home.

The court also heard how the grandmother ordered the teen to delete the video of her husband demanding sex from her.

In his last appearance, the grandfather said he had consensual sex with the victim.

Yesterday, he said the teen forced him to sleep with her because her body language communicated more than she was able to say with her mouth.

“Actions speak louder than words. She walked around naked and what did she expect me to do?

“I asked her if she had ever slept with a man and she said yes. I then asked her if she was willing to be intimate with me and she just stared at me.

“That’s when I went to the bedroom and collected a condom and had sex with her,” he said.

“I didn’t struggle to penetrate as we were having sexual intercourse, which goes to show that the girl was already sexually active before I even slept with her”.

One more witness is expected to testify as the trial continues today.

Tinashe Dzipe is prosecuting.