It was almost 2 o’clock in the evening on Sunday, March 26, when a group of friends playing soccer on a field in Eau-Coulée spotted a barefoot boy shivering alone at Laverder Hill Street. They stopped the boy and asked him why he was out at this hour. The 11 year old, a grade 6 student at Wooton Government School, told them, “Mo boper ine bat mwa avek enn bar feray lor mo lekor partou. The stepfather in question, a 23-year-old bricklayer living in Curepipe, was arrested on Monday, March 27.
A police officer assigned to the Eau-Coulée police station reported this case of child abuse on behalf of one of the three soccer players, a 24-year-old painter living in Eau-Coulée. In this deposition, the young painter explained that at approximately 7:59 p.m. on Sunday, March 26, he was on the soccer field on Lavender Hill Street in Couvent Lorette, Eau-Coulée, when he saw a small boy walking barefoot.
He said he approached the child and asked him why he was out at a late hour. The child, who was shivering, told him that he had been assaulted with an iron bar all over his body by his stepfather. Immediately, he had to take the child to the Eau-Coulée police station. He was later taken to the Victoria Hospital, Candos, after being examined, the child was admitted to the ward. His health condition is considered stable.
During the day on Monday March 27th, the suspect was apprehended by a team of police officers. He was subsequently placed in a cell at the detention center in Vacoas. This Tuesday morning, March 28, he was brought before the court of Curepipe and returned to the police cell.
