Man accused of raping mute niece for two years 'knowing she cannot tell anyone'

A man is accused of raping his disabled niece, who has cerebral palsy and cannot speak.

The 55-year-old allegedly abused his 28-year-old niece for two years in the city of Aktobe in western Kazakhstan.

During the span of time, the young woman, who is unable to hear or speak, tried to explain to her relatives what was going on with gestures.

It took her a long time until they started to realise the horrific truth.

The victim's mother made the allegations in comments to local media: "We noticed that she was behaving aggressively when the uncle was visiting us.

"I asked, ''Did he touch you?''

"She nodded and showed me with gestures what he did to her.

"She also explained that he had been raping her for two years."

According to the mother, the abuse had been taking place during the working days while all relatives were at work and the victim was home alone.

The distraught woman said: 'I gave him [the uncle] the key to our apartment and asked to check on my daughter from time to time while we were at work.

"He reads the Quran. He heals people. I trusted him."

Reports say the man visited his niece almost every day, taking advantages of her disability.

"He would force her to sit on a chair and sexually abuse her several times per visit," the crying mum told.

The victim's relatives reported the uncle to the police who initiated a criminal case.

During interrogation, the suspect admitted that he had sex with the victim but claimed that his niece, who can barely walk, had seduced him, police said.

On January 6 the case was handed to the Aktobe District Court.

After preliminary hearings, the case was sent back to a prosecutor because it lacked a detailed description of the circumstances of the crime, according to local media reports.

The court spokeswoman Aizhamal Sundet told media in Kazakhstan: "The criminal case for rape was opened against the suspect. The court returned the case to the prosecutor's office for further investigation."

The mother told reporters she fears the alleged rapist will avoid punishment because her daughter is not able to tell all the details of her ordeal.