Malawian paid to violate virginity of over 100 girls found guilty

A Malawian court has ruled that a man paid to deflower over 100 girls, has flouted the laws of the country and has a case to answer.

According to the court, Hyena Eric Aniva, was guilty on charges of practicing harmful cultural norms contrary to Section 5 subsections 1 and 2 of the Gender Act of 2013, local news portal Malawi24.com reports.

The accused will remain in police custody till November 18 when the court delivers its final ruling on the case. 45-year old Aniva has been denied bail on several times since he was arrested on July 25, 2016.

The prosecution also said the 45-year-old — who has said he is infected with the AIDS virus — was likely to jump bail and cross the border into Mozambique.

He was arrested on the instructions of President Peter Mutharika after the accused confessed in a BBC interview days earlier that he had defiled over 100 virgins as part of initiation rites into womanhood.

Malawi, which has one of the highest HIV infections in the world, criminalises sex with a person under the age of 16. His confession drew a lot of condemnation from rights groups who called for the authorities to prosecute him.

The little-known local practice of having sex with adolescent girls to mark their passage to womanhood is performed in southern Malawi by men known as “hyenas” at the behest of a girl’s parents after her first menstruation.