An elderly man facing charges for sexual offences involving young girls is a danger to poor children, the court heard.
|||Cape Town - An elderly man facing multiple counts of sexual offences involving young girls is a danger to any child living in poverty, the Goodwood District Court in Cape Town heard on Thursday.
The 77-year-old faces 22 charges involving sexual offences. It was likely more charges would be added, said prosecutor Mario September.
The man, who brought a bail application on Thursday, cannot be named until he has pleaded.
September said that while he walked free, he was a risk to children.
When September said all the victims were from poor backgrounds, the man protested: “I am not guilty, and did not take advantage of anyone”.
The prosecutor described how he allegedly watched pornographic videos with the children in his Richwood home.
“You can go on exaggerating as much as you want to, but I will plead not guilty,” the man said.
He said he had co-operated with the police since his arrest on July 15.
Cartons of pornographic magazines and metre-high transparent plastic bags containing pornographic videos were visible in the well of the courtroom.
September read from a list of the titles of the videos, some of which were about teenagers, and some about bestiality. The man told the court he had no pending criminal cases against him and that he had not been arrested before.
“I’m not the kind of person who normally gets into trouble.”
He said he was self-employed, and ran a business organising financial exhibitions.
He told the court he was diagnosed with HIV four years ago. He was divorced and had since had the “odd girlfriend” and several, casual, one-night stands.
He had been unable to have sex since having an operation on his prostate gland.
The bail application continues next Friday.
Sapa