The mother of a 11-year-old girl who was raped in Llanbradach Park has thanked the community for its help during the aftermath of the attack.
The woman, who cannot be named for legal reasons, wrote to Caerphilly Observer to say thank you to villagers who supported the family. The mother said they had moved from Llanbradach following the attack in January last year.
She said: “We are moving on from what happened but it has been a long process but we are getting there thanks. My daughter has coped extremely well with what happened and is doing very well at her new school.
“I am immensely proud of her – she is a very brave and remarkable little girl.
“The whole village was so supportive to my family and am very grateful. We miss Llanbradach but felt moving was important.
“I realise it has been a while but I never got the opportunity to thank the people as we moved more or less straight away. The support from the village, the police and everyone involved was great.”
The attack, on January 4 2010, shocked the community of Llanbradach with public meetings held to discuss what had happened.
Joseph Rees, 19, of Llantwit Fardre, Pontypridd, was jailed indefinitely after he admitted the sexual assault.