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- An alleged rape survivor finally finished testifying in the Cape Town sex-trafficking case on Wednesday.
- Her testimony was long and emotional, with many questions about apparent inconsistencies in what she said happened to her.
- For the self-described "party girl" who chooses to sleep on the streets so no one can tell her what to do, it has been a very difficult time on the witness stand.
The woman accusing an alleged brothel keeper in Brooklyn of raping her, finally finished testifying on Wednesday in the lengthy sex trafficking trial being heard in the Western Cape High Court.
The woman, who may not be named, was asked by defence advocate Mohamed Sibda why she went to court to support Edward Ayuk, who she accused of raping her in 2017, but also identified as her boyfriend during a police raid.
With her hands tucked into the pockets of her puffy cream winter jacket, and an angry glint in her eyes, she replied: "That's a lie; that's not the truth."
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She explained that the investigating officer kept her uncle up to date with new developments in the investigation, and asked for her to be at court for one of Edward's early court appearances.
And when she got there, the investigating officer told her that Edward had already appeared in court and had left.
"Eddie is not my boyfriend," she snapped.
On Tuesday, she sobbed when the pressure of being cross-examined on the plausibility of her allegation became too much.
Sibda pointed out inconsistencies between her statement to the police and her evidence in court, such as whether she was raped five times, as the police statement said, or once, as she testified.
READ | Witness in human trafficking trial testifies about her attempt to flee drug den 'brothel'
The medical examiner's report did not note injuries usually associated with being raped multiple times. When the police raided the house in September 2017, she initially told them that Edward was her boyfriend.
She explained that the police wore civilian clothing, and she only felt free to tell them what happened once she was taken to a police station in a police van.
The woman was only 16 at the time of the alleged rape, although she readily admitted to telling everyone she was 19 at the time.
She described herself as a "party girl" who lived on the streets of Cape Town to get away from being told what to do at home in Maitland.
She liked clubbing and having drinks with friends, but most of her friends were a few years older than her.
She said:
Ayuk and his brother Yannick Ayuk and Edward's estranged wife, Leandra Williams Ayuk, face charges of sex trafficking, drug possession, assault, and debt bondage. Edward is also accused of the rape of the woman who has been testifying.
They are alleged to have offered good working conditions to women and girls from either Gqeberha or Springbok, who were already supporting themselves (and a drug addiction) with sex work.
Other women have testified that they did not get the money that they brought in from clients who stopped for their services on Koeberg Road, near the Ysterplaat Airforce Base.
Instead, they claimed they were given a set amount of free drugs every day to put them in the mood for work, and when they used all the drugs, they could buy more from the house, on credit.
The court heard that the women in the house could also be hired as company for overnight drug users.
All three of the accused pleaded not guilty. None of the clients were arrested.
The trial continues.
