Thato*, one of Nhlapo’s victims who still fears for her life said she met Nhlapo on Facebook in April 2018 and only agreed to meet him when he made an offer she could not refuse being a young model, only to be assaulted and raped.
She said Nhlapo sent her a text asking to know her better.
“He was a bit interested in my career of modelling after viewing my pictures on Facebook. Mokena asked to meet me in person but I refused for more than 5 five times until the day when he said he is running one company that is looking for a model for an advertisement of “Nivea”.
“I became suspicious of what he was telling me but it came into my mind that I should try my luck,” Thato said.
She recollects Nhlapo saying she can meet him at the Maputsoe border gate so that he could give me a brief explanation of what she said appeared at the time to be a “massive opportunity”.
Thato said Nhlapo told her, he had bought her an iPhone 7 in Gold Colour as an appreciation of her becoming the “Face of Nivea” and added to the surprise she said was a shopping voucher worth R5000.00.
She said Nhlapo had suggested she must bring a friend to accompany her because she had been hesitant to meet him and sceptical.
Thato said she had invited one of her friends to accompany her to meet Nhlapo.
“On Friday 4th May 2018 at about 8:00 am, I received R200.00 on My MPesa Account from a man whom Mokena claimed to be his friend by the name of Dr Molapo. For that, we hired a taxi from Maseru to Maputsoe.
“The agreement was to meet Mokena at Maputsoe border post, then go shopping in Bethlehem and receive an iPhone 7 from Nivea Company as an appreciation of being part of the team.
“We agreed with Mr Mokena that at 5 pm I’ll be back in Lesotho as I was still preparing for my final exams which were commencing on Monday 7th,”Thato recalls.
She said they arrived at Maputsoe border post at around 12:00 noon.
She said when they met; Nhlapo told them he was using one of his friend’s car because he recently took his for a service.
“We then drove to Senekal where he wanted to pick his friend Dr Molapo!
“At our arrival in Senekal, Nhlapo took us to his friend’s house where he bought a lot of beer and forced us to drink and have fun with him.
“The owner of that house was a Councillor in Senekal and he was with his Girlfriend who was very nice to me and my friend,” said Thato.
Thato said this made Nhlapo jealous as he saw the women talking cheerfully.
Thato said then Nhlapo unleashed his ugly side when he slapped her across the face very hard ordering her not to talk to the councillor’s wife. She said Nhlapo then forced them to drink alcohol and showcased us to friends who were flocking in out of the house.
She alleges later on Nhlapo locked her in one of the rooms where “he forced me to sleep with him telling me that nothing comes for free in this world. I should pay his iPhone7 and shopping voucher by sleeping with him”.
Thato said she realised Nhlapo was now revealing his true colours but it was too late as she tried to refuse but Nhlapo assaulted her.
“He beat me to death. He even threatened to shoot me and showed me a pepper spray. He then raped me.
“He told me that there’s a spy camera and in that room, he’s recording a sex tape.
“After raping me, he demanded my parents’ contacts but I gave him one of my old numbers so the phone was unavailable.
“He forced my friend to also sleep with the very same man that picked us at Maputsoe boarder Gate. Luckily that man refused to rape my friend,” said Thato as she narrated her ordeal in the hands of Nhlapo.
She further adds that this annoyed Nhlapo as he demanded his friend must rape her friend also as he had done with her.
“He ended telling us that we’ll leave for Lesotho when he wants us to.
“We waited for his friend Dr Molapo till 10:00 pm where Mokena took us to his house at Fouriesburg. He told us that we shall leave to Lesotho in the Morning.
“Nhlapo took our bags to his RDP house and went to different clubs with us, forcing us to drink alcohol.
“At about 12 midnight we went back to his house to sleep. My friend slept in another room while I slept in the same room with him.
“On Saturday morning, it was about 4:30 am, I took my bag and escaped from his house, I couldn’t find the room where he had kept my friend. The aim was to go to Fouriesburg police but one of my friends told me that they won’t help me at all. I then took a hike to Lesotho at 5:00 am,” said Thato.
She said she later arrived at the Maseru Boarder gate at 7 am.
She said Nhlapo and her friend went to the police station to report her disappearance, adding she later learned they then took her friend to the Maseru border gate with R100.00 for Transport.
She said the very same day, her friend arrived at 9 am at Maseru border post. Thereafter, Thato said, “Mokena, threatened that my sex tape would be posted on social media, the one he had taken while raping me”.
Thato said she was facing a lot of fever due to her exams and threats from Nhlapo and his friend Dr Molapo.
“I began to receive uncountable threatening messages on WhatsApp and Facebook from different numbers from that day till the day he was arrested.
“After my escape, Nhlapo told me that he’s going to do whatever it takes to ruin my reputation on social media.
“He even used my pictures to threaten some of his victims including Nom’s Family, sometimes using his Lesotho cellular phone number,” she said.
*Name has been changed to protect the victim.
