A ZVISHAVANE man, under Chief Mataruse’s area, is in trouble after he was arrested for marrying and impregnating a 14-year-old minor who was doing Form 1 at a local school.
The 20-year-old man, whose name cannot be revealed to protect the identity of the victim, on Thursday appeared before magistrate Archie Wochiunga facing charges of having sexual intercourse with a minor.
He pleaded guilty to the charge, telling the court that he was in love with the 14-year-old and that the minor consented to having sex which eventually led to the pregnancy.
The man was sentenced to eight months behind bars or alternatively to perform 210 hours community service at Gwemvurachena Primary School in his area.
The court heard that at an unknown date sometime last year, the accused proposed love to the minor and she agreed.
They then had sexual intercourse on several occasions, leading to the minor getting pregnant.
Upon realising the pregnancy, the minor eloped in November last year and started staying with the accused as husband and wife.
The minor’s father reported the matter to the police leading to the arrest of the accused in the same month.
The latest case comes at a time when at least 50 minor girls are said to have been married off in Zvishavane and Mberengwa districts in a space of three months only.
Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) have since called for government intervention to address the matter.