Graveyard gang-rape trial of three delayed

THE trial of three men accused of grabbing a young couple and forcing them into the bushes near the Bethelsdorp Cemetery in 2009 and raping the woman was postponed in the Port Elizabeth High Court yesterday.

The trial will resume in December.

Duraan Thomas, 29, Curtley Erasmus, 18, and Lee-Roy Joseph, 23, are charged with attempted robbery, robbery and rape.

It is alleged the three men confronted the couple on June 15 2009. The couple, who cannot be identified as they are in witness protection and are the victims of a sexual crime, were allegedly searched for valuables but did not have anything with them.

The men took turns raping the woman. The man was forced to perform oral sex on them.

Bail conditions for Erasmus have been extended while Thomas and Joseph will remain in custody until their legal representative makes a formal bail application to the magistrate's court. – Lee-Anne Butler