A 56-year-old American fugitive, who fled Texas, in the United States, for allegedly raping two minors in 2017 and 2019, one of whom was his daughter, will appear in the Gqeberha magistrate’s court on Wednesday.
The man was arrested last week Wednesday by Interpol and the South African Police Service (Saps) at his home in Kabega Park, Gqeberha.
He briefly appeared before the court on Friday, where the state indicated that it will oppose any bail application.
US rape-suspect and fugitive
In 2017, the victim’s mother reported the assault to the San Antonio Police Department in Texas.
Additionally, according to reports from US publication KSAT, the man had been on the run since May 2019 after an indictment was filed.
The indictment detailed that the suspect sexually assaulted the child through physical force and contact.
Saps spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Amanda van Wyk said, according to Interpol’s report, the suspect also shared explicit text messages with her, over a period, when she was 12 years old at the time.
Tracing to Eastern Cape
After the San Antonio Police Department completed its investigation, the suspect fled the US and was traced to the Eastern Cape, South Africa.
According to police, the US embassy in Cape Town approached the Nelson Mandela Bay detective task team in 2024 to help trace the suspect.
“Interpol National Central Bureau (NCB) Pretoria traced the suspect and executed a Section 5(1)(b) warrant upon receipt of the USA’s extradition request with support from the Nelson Mandela Bay District Intervention Task Team, Crime Combating Unit, and Mount Road Crime Intelligence,” Van Wyk said.
He is expected to face an extradition application by the government of the United States of America to the Republic of South Africa.
