South Africa’s Deputy Police Commissioner Charged with Rape and Child Grooming

One of South Africa’s most senior police officers has been charged with raping an 18-year-old woman and grooming a 16-year-old girl. The case adds to growing public anger over police corruption and violence against women in the country. Shadrack Sibiya, the deputy national police commissioner, was arrested on Monday. He was already suspended over allegations that he interfered with investigations into political killings. He now faces charges of rape, people trafficking, promoting the sexual grooming of a child, and two counts of grooming a child. The arrest comes as South Africa struggles with high rates of femicide — the killing of women and girls — and repeated accusations that police are corrupt or fail to protect victims of gender-based violence.