A 31-year-old man accused of abducting and raping his seven-year-old relative in Lautoka in 2015 made his first appearance at the Lautoka Magistrates Court yesterday.

He has been charged with one count of abduction of a person under the age of 18 years with intent to have carnal knowledge, one count of rape, and one count of abduction.

He appeared before Magistrate Rangajeeva Wimalasena and was represented by defence lawyer Victor Sharma. Mr Sharma applied for bail for his client which police prosecutor Constable Shelveen Sharma objected to.

The State prosecutor, however, said the accused resided near the victim and was at risk of interfering with State witnesses. He said the offence was of a serious nature and if the 31-year-old was granted bail, he was likely to not appear on his next court date.

Meanwhile, the defence argued the accused was a full-time university student and lived in Suva.

Mr Sharma said his client would not be able to interfere in any investigations because he would be in Suva. He said his client had four children and had no previous convictions. The application for bail was denied.

The case has been transferred to the High Court and adjourned to August 4.