Drunk teen 'forced into sex act'

BY BRONWYN TORRIE

A teacher on trial for allegedly stupefying a student before performing oral sex, also took advantage of another 16-year-old who was drunk and stoned, the High Court in Palmerston North has heard.

The man is on trial for historic sexual abuse charges against two teenage boys who attended an Auckland school. The man's identity and the name of the school have been suppressed.

In 1990, one of the 16-year-old boys had returned to the school for a reunion, after being expelled for stealing, the now 37-year-old man told the court yesterday.

The man told the jury he went to a disco at the school hall at night and passed out on the rugby field after drinking whisky and gin, and smoking cannabis.

The teacher saw him stumble to the field and asked the boy if he needed somewhere to sleep. He took the boy to a school van.

After dropping people off, the pair returned to the school and went inside to the teacher's office. The boy laid down on a mattress.

"I remember him taking my top off because I can't hardly move at that stage and when I hit the bed everything just came to me all at once, the pressure of the alcohol."

He said he fell asleep wearing just his underpants and woke to the man performing a sexual act on him.

The boy told the man to stop and tried to get up, but he didn't have the energy to fight. The teacher then forced the boy to perform an indecent act on him.

"When I woke up I had no clothes on me whatsoever so I pulled the sheet around me to cover my body. Then I'm looking for my clothes but I can't find them.

"I go to open the door but it's locked."

He said as the teacher gave the boy his clothes and unlocked the door, he apologised.

The teacher's lawyer Paul Mabey, QC, suggested the man was bitter because the accused was one of the teachers who asked him to leave the school.

Mr Mabey pointed out the variations between the man's first statement given to police while in jail at Manawatu Prison in 2002 and the evidence he gave later.

Mr Mabey told the jury the teacher's defence was "complete denial" of the 1990 incident, which related to a charge of unlawful sexual connection with a male aged 16 or over and indecent assault of a boy aged 16 or over.

During the Crown's opening address Chris Shannon told the jury another 16-year-old boy was sexually abused by the same man at the school in 1994.

The student went to see the teacher one night about a subject he was having difficulty with.

"The accused began massaging the boy," Mr Shannon said.

He took out a small bottle, removed the lid and put it in front of the boy's nose, making him feel "warm" and "fuzzy".

The teacher took off the boys pants and shirt and touched his bottom and penis.

"He tried to get up and move from the accused and told him it wasn't right," Mr Shannon said.

The boy felt "revolted" and pulled up his pants.

The teacher was charged with doing an indecent act on a boy aged between 12 and 16 and unlawful sexual connection with a male aged between 12 and 16.

Mr Shannon told the jury about a second incident which involved the teacher performing a sex act on the same boy a short time later.

The boy, now aged 34, was due to give evidence today.

Both men did not report the alleged incidents to police until a few years ago.

The trial, presided over by Justice Robert Dobson, is expected to last four days.

- © Fairfax NZ News