By Gill Gifford and Botho Molosankwe
The sordid details of what is alleged to have happened to girls at the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy have finally emerged in court.
The 14 charges - many of them sex related and committed against girls aged 13 and 14 - were on Monday morning to put to former dormatory parents Virginia Tiny Makopo(corr) at the Sebokeng magistrate's court.
The 28-year-old woman remained mute and unemotional as details of the case against her were laid out by prosecutor Etienne Venter. She pleaded not guilty to all 14 counts.
Venter read out the charge sheet and Makopo and was asked to plead after each count.
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Count 1, criment injuria, was that she called a 13-year-old girl a "bitch", a "prostitute", told her she was dirty, she was "nothing" and acted like a lesbian.
Count 2, indecent assault, was that she kissed a 13-year-old girl with an open mouth, touched her breasts over her clothes and placed the girl's hands on her own breasts.
Count 3, assault, was that she called the girl onto a bed and kicked her on her knee.
Count 4, indecent assault, was that she repeatedly went into a 14-year-old girl's room at night, climbed into her bed with her, hugged her, rubbed her nose against the girl's cheek and pulled her close and rubbed her breast against the child's breast.
Count 6, assualt, was that Mokopo allegedly threw a 14-year-old girl onto a couch, climbed on top of her, forced her to eat castard and rubbed it into her hair.
Count 6, assault with the intent to cause grievious bodily harm, was that the accused forcibly held a 14-year-old girl under a shower, and beat up the child under running water, causing bruises.
Count 7, crimen injuria, was that the accused told a 13-year-old girl she was stupid and did not deserved to be at the academy.
Count 8, assault, was that the accused pushed a 13-year-old girl against a wall and strangled her with both hands around her neck and her thumbs on the child's wind pipe.
Count 9, immoral or indecent act, was that the accused wrongfully solicited a 13-year-ld girl into committing an indecent act by insisting that the child kiss her in the same way she kisses her boyfriend.
Count 10, indecent assault, was that the accused grabbed a 13-year-old girl by her arm, kissed her on her neck and touched her all over her body on top of her clothes.
Count 11, assault, was that the accused slapped a 13-year-old girl with open hands, hit her on her back, pushed her down a corridor and forced her to sit on a cold floor for 15 minutes.
Count 12, immoral or indecent act, was that the accused wrongfully solicited or enticed an under-age girl to commit indecent act by repeatedly asking a 14-year-girl to become a lesbian and ask her to be a homosexual.
Count 13, indecent assault, was that the accused would go to a 14-year-old girl at night in her bed, hug her and ask her to become a lesbian.
Coutnt 14, assault, was that the accused allegedly assaulted a 23-year-old female colleague by pushing her around and pulling her by her clothes.
Magistrate Thelma Simpson warned Makopo that because some of the charges involved indecent assault on children under the age of 16, should she be convicted she faced a prescribed minimum sentence of 10 years for a first offence.
The courtroom was packed with journalists, photographers and cameramen as the case has attracted the attention of Americans.
Read the full the story in The Star
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