38 South African women beat alleged rapist to death

A group of 38 South African women, who are accused of killing an alleged rapist, has been granted free bail by the Magistrate Court in South Africa's Eastern Cape province.

The female mob - all residents of Ngcobo near Mthatha - went ballistic last week Friday after coming across a 27-year old man who earlier that day was granted bail on rape charges. The women, aged between 23 and 70 - assaulted him when he was waiting at a bus stop. He died on the scene. The police said the case has been remanded to the 17th of November. It is not the first mob killing in the Eastern Cape province. Recently a 35-year-old man was killed in Kwazakhele. The man allegedly assaulted and tried to rape a 65-year-old woman. “The mob was alerted to the alleged assault and attempted rape when the woman screamed. The community came with sticks and stones and beat him to death,” a police officer said. After the latest mob killing, the police has warned the public not to take the law into their own hands. When it comes to crime in South Africa, rape is one of the biggest problems. Between April 2008 and March 2009, the police reported 71.500 rape cases. Organizations like Rape Crisis, who offer support to rape victims, say the real figure is much higher as only one in nine rape cases are being reported to the police.