Shocking Job Scheme That Exposed a Karoo Farmer’s Sickest Secret!
MAKHANDA — Six young women travelled to a Karoo farm believing they had secured work caring for children. On Wednesday, the Makhanda High Court convicted their employer, Louis Lategan, of trafficking all six and raping three of them.
Judge Judith Roberson found the 42 year old farmer guilty following a trial centred on the recruitment and abuse of women at his property in Xamdeboo, formerly Aberdeen. He was acquitted of raping two other women but convicted of assaulting them instead.
The women, aged between 18 and 24, had struggled to find employment after leaving school. They travelled hundreds of kilometres to take up the positions, arriving at a farm where they knew nobody.
Prosecutor Nickie Turner told the court that Lategan gave them drugged drinks, after which they woke in his bed without remembering what had happened. Lategan denied drugging the women and maintained that the sexual encounters were consensual.
The convictions extend beyond the offences against the au pairs. Lategan was also found guilty of three counts of assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm involving children, another assault on a child, two assaults on an adult farm worker and two counts of unlawful possession of ammunition.
Earlier court reporting described recruitment through Facebook and an employment agency. The prosecution argued that the childcare positions were a means of bringing women to the farm for sexual exploitation.
A psychologist who assessed four complainants testified about their isolation and lack of support on the farm. The court also heard evidence from a safe house operator and a medical practitioner about the distress of one woman who sought help after leaving.
The verdict establishes criminal responsibility after Lategan contested the charges. IOL’s report did not announce a sentence or sentencing date.
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