Alleged child rapist's trial to go ahead

THE trial of a Uitenhage man who is accused of raping his four-year-old niece will proceed in the Port Elizabeth High Court on Monday after negotiations with the state broke down yesterday.

There had been talks over the possibility of a plea agreement in the trial of the accused, 52, who cannot be named to protect the identity of the victim, now aged seven.

The man will remain in custody until the start of the trial.

The state alleges he raped his niece at the home of his sister in KwaNobuhle in the early hours of December 6 2011. He had decided to sleep over at the home of his sister – who is also the girl's aunt – where the girl was also spending the night. - Lee-Anne Butler