Staff Reporter
A couple that allegedly burnt their 14-year-old son with boiling water under circumstances that remain unclear has been granted bail by the Bloemfontein Magistrates Court.
Police say the couple, which lives on Douglas Street in the city, now faces a charge of attempted murder for the brutal attack.
The names of the parents will not be published in order to protect the identity of the child who also has two siblings aged eight and five years old.
It was confirmed in court that the child, who has a condition, is from the woman’s past relationship.
The husband, who is the second accused in the matter, is originally from Nigeria while the mother is South African, but was born in Angola after her family left the country during the struggle days.
This was discussed at length in court as it was feared they were a flight risk and should not be released on bail.
Police say they visited the family which lives in a named block of flats after receiving a tip of potential child abuse.
“The investigator attended to the complaint and on arrival she discovered that there was a child who was abused by his parents,” said police in a written response to The Free Stater.
“On observation, the child was severely burnt with boiling water, allegedly beaten and locked in a room for a long period of time. The parents… were both arrested as suspects.”
They were each granted bail of R2 000 and are expected back in court on October 20.
A source close to the case said the child, who has since been put in a place of safety, has claimed that he had been abused by the two before the latest incident.
“The boy is 14 years old but he has the mental capacity of an eight-year-old. It’s however not known whether he was born like that or it’s a medical condition or a result of abuse,” said the source who preferred not to be named.
“The child is said to have come back home around 9pm and it’s said the parents were not happy and decided to discipline him but it seems they went a bit too far.
“Some neighbours heard the boy screaming and decided to alert the police.”