A 37-year-old businessman was charged yesterday for allegedly raping his 14-year-old stepdaughter, who is a consistent honor student, in Barangay Poblacion, Liloan.
PO2 Laarni Cabataña said six counts of rape and illegal possession of a firearm were filed against Jhon (real name withheld) before the Office of the Cebu Provincial Prosecutor. Raping a minor is a non-bailable offense.
Cabataña, the Women and Children’s Protection Desk (WCPD) assistant chief, said the assault allegedly happened inside the suspect’s internet cafe at 1 p.m. yesterday. The cafe was closed.
She said the complainant Mollie (real name withheld) has been sexually assaulted by the suspect since she was seven years old.
The eighth grader kept the abuses to herself as she feared Jhon. Her mother is an overseas worker.
Cabataña described Jhon as a serial offender. He previously faced a complaint for allegedly raping a minor, but he settled it before it reached the court.
“He has a pending case of child abuse. Gipangsultihan niya ang iyang silingan nga ganahan ba daw sila ma-rape niya (He asked his neighbors if they wanted him to rape them),” she said in a phone interview.
Before the incident, Jhon accompanied Mollie to get anti-rabies vaccines in the provincial hospital in Danao City.
They then went home and had lunch. Mollie was in her school uniform when Jhon asked her about a sex-related subject.
The suspect then opened a porn site and forced her to watch and undress. He punched her thrice in the abdomen and choked her before raping her.
The abuse stopped after a male employee called out Jhon’s name outside the cafe. He then brought Mollie to school.
Supt. Randy Korret, the town police chief, said that the girl reported the incident to the principal.
The school principal then told the police about the girl’s fate. The WCPD personnel then went to arrest the suspect in his residence.
A loaded .45 pistol was recovered from the suspect. (KAL)