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Patrick Chitumba, Midlands Bureau Chief
A 13-YEAR-OLD pupil in Grade Seven at a Gweru school is lucky to be alive after she concealed her bleeding for a week having had sexual intercourse with a 48-year-old man who lured her with $15.

The girl, the court heard yesterday, tried to conceal the bleeding for a week until her aunt saw blood stained clothes and blankets she had hidden in her room.

This came out during the trial of a 48-year-old vendor from Ascot suburb in Gweru who appeared before Gweru magistrate, Mr Musaiwona Shotgame, facing one count of sleeping with a minor.

Since the girl is above 12 years old and is admitting that she consented to sleep with the man, the accused is now facing a lesser charge of sleeping with a minor.

The accused who pleaded not guilty to the charge was remanded out of custody to October 18 for continuation of trial.

Giving her evidence, the girl said she started having sex with boys when she was in Grade Two.

She said she also consented to having intercourse with the man.

Her aunt told the court that after her ordeal, the girl tried to conceal the matter for about a week.

“One day I entered the toilet and found blood on the floor. On investigating, we realised that it was her who was bleeding and had been hiding blood-stained clothes, linen and blankets under the bed,” she said.

Prosecutor, Mr Bernard Nyoni said in December  last year, the complainant was outside the house preparing to go to school and their neighbour called her.

He gave her $5 and did not say anything.

“When the complainant came back from school, the accused called her to his house and had consensual sexual intercourse with the complainant once. The complainant went home and told no one,” said Mr Nyoni.

On another day during the same month, the accused gave the girl $10 as she was preparing to go to school.

When she came back from school, the court heard that the accused had consensual sexual intercourse with the complainant for the second time.

“On another date in December, the accused had sexual intercourse with the complainant and after the act, she discovered that she was bleeding and the accused person told her to put paper between her legs before dismissing her,” he said.

Mr Nyoni said the matter came to light when the complainant messed up the toilet with blood stains.

She subsequently revealed to her aunt that she had consensual sex with the accused person on three different occasions.

@pchitumba1.