Man, 21, charged with 8-year-old niece’s rape

By SCHOLAR KASSAS
A 21-YEAR-OLD man was charged in the Waigani Committal Court with raping his eight-year-old niece in Port Moresby last month.
Magistrate Ore Ore, on Monday, read out one count of rape to Elizah Andiye, from Tambul Neibyler’s Venda village in Western Highlands, and fixed Dec 20 for next hearing.
Police prosecutor Snr Const Peter Samghy told the court that Andiye was also charged with one count of persistent sexual abuse and three counts of raping a minor.
Magistrate Ore said he did not have the other charges before him other than the one count of rape.
Snr Const Peter Samghy then asked the court to adjourn the matter for a month to give time for the police to file evidence for the charges. Magistrate Ore then told Andiye: “Since this is a fresh case, the court is adjourned to Dec 20, to give enough time for the police to make a police file.”
Police alleged that Andiye raped his niece three times on different occasions in his room between Oct 14 and Oct 26, in their family house in Makana, Morobe block, 9-Mile.
Andiye allegedly threatened his niece not to tell her mother and it was fear that kept the victim from reporting the rape to her mother.
However, the niece told her mother on Nov 7, and the matter was reported to Gordon’s police.
The niece was then sent to the hospital for medical examination.
Magistrate Ore remanded Andiye and told him to seek a lawyer to file a formal bail application and make a formal submission to court if he wanted to request for bail.