Malmesbury teen faces 11 charges, seven of sexual assault

Sensitive Content Warning A Malmesbury teenager , who was arrested for alleged links to online child exploitation networks, faces a string of pornography and sexual assault charges.

The 16-year-old was taken into custody during an international sting operation .

He appeared in the Malmesbury Magistrate’s Court in the Western Cape on Tuesday.

The case has been postponed to Thursday.

This follows the arrest having taken place as a result of cooperation between South African and US law enforcement including the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Homeland Security.

National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) Western Cape spokesperson, Eric Ntabazalila says the accused faces eleven charges which include seven counts of sexual assault.

He also faces charges of cruelty to animals and data message which threatens persons with damage to property of violence.

Ntabazalila says, “Most of the people that are involved in these types, they become part of a global group or they work with global groups, so they get monitored.

At times we get other countries involved, not only the FBI, some investigation or police units in other countries as well monitor them, follow up and then report to South Africa and they become People of Interest and then there is a corporation between our law enforcement and their law enforcements and they rope in us, which leads to arrests and prosecutions.”