By John Chimunhu
The South African man charged with holding his wife and children hostage for years has admitted that he abused drugs.
The man, whose identity is being withheld to protect his minor children, told relatives at the weekend that both he and the woman he held captive for years were invertebrate drug users.
The relatives told journalists that the man and his wife neglected their children aged two and 16 and would go partying for days, leaving their teenage daughter to look after the others.
The so-called ‘house of horrors’ in Springs in Gauteng’s East Rand was busted by the police after one of the children escaped and alerted neighbours.
The children have since been rescued and the man will appear in court again this week. He was accused of torturing and abusing his children and preventing them from going to school.
The man told his relatives that his wife was hooked on khat, a toxic local drug and should go into rehab.
Die Volksblad reported that the man had punched his son in the face, breaking his nose, allegedly for misplacing his car’s electronic key.
The wife and children were kept inside a walled house. Neighbours said their reports of suspicious activity at the house were not acted upon by police and Childline, the child rescue organisation.
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