Reuters AlertNet Lite - SAfrica's "Angel of Soweto" arrested for assault

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SAfrica's "Angel of Soweto" arrested for assault

19 Feb 2007 15:22:19 GMT
Source: Reuters

JOHANNESBURG, Feb 19 (Reuters) - A South African school principal once dubbed "The Angel of Soweto" but recently stung by media accusations of fraud has been arrested on charges of kidnapping and assaulting a journalist, the SABC said on Monday.

Jackie Maarohanye, whose Ithuteng Trust school in Soweto has been praised by Nelson Mandela and U.S. talk show host Oprah Winfrey, was remanded in custody until Friday when a bail hearing will be set, South Africa's public broadcaster said.

SABC, the public broadcaster, said Maarohanye collapsed in court and was taken to hospital for treatment of injuries alleged to have been sustained during her arrest.

Widely known as "Mama Jackey", Maarohanye was accused of being part of a mob that kidnapped and assaulted a journalist for the Sowetan newspaper on Saturday when he arrived at her school to conduct an interview about school finances.

"I was scared witless and thought I was going to die," journalist Vusi Ndlovu wrote in his account of the seven-hour ordeal, adding that he was beaten and threatened by Maarohanye and her supporters.

Several dozen parents and children at Ithuteng were also arrested after the incident.

Maarohanye has repeatedly been in the headlines over the past year, since a South African television investigative report accused her of coaching children to fabricate stories and pocketing donations to the Ithuteng school.

She denied the accusations, but has since been involved in a number of altercations that further soured her public image.

Ithuteng, which means "Never Stop Learning", was the subject of a prize-winning 2005 documentary that the New York Times said spurred Winfrey to donate $1.4 million to the school.

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Last updated:Mon Feb 19 15:23:25 2007