Kono — A thirty-seven-year-old man, a welder working for the Sierra Leone Diamond Company and resident of Seijko village in the Sandor chiefdom, Kono district is alleged to have raped his stepdaughter aged 13.

The daughter (name withheld) who is also a class 4 pupil of the Roman Catholic primary school in Tefeya town said she has been sexually assaulted on several occasions and when she refuse the attempt at some point the father threatened to kill her.

The girl said she decided to abandon the house and stay with a friend in Tefeya town for a couple of days until her stepfather pleaded with her to return home.

"I went to the Tefeya police post and informed the police of the sexual harassment I have been going through in the hands of my stepfather," she said.

She was issued with a medical report form for onward treatment but the father has denied the allegations but he is with the police helping in their investigations.