Johannesburg - Rape accused Johannes Molefe's lawyer charged that the alleged victims in her client's case had been coached to tell "fabrications", which is why the State failed to prove beyond reasonable doubt that egregious sexual crimes were committed.
Advocate Lumka Qoqo was delivering her closing arguments in the case against the former school patroller Molefe, who is facing three rape counts and 11 of sexual assault for allegedly violating girls aged between 5 and 13 last year at a Soweto school.
On Monday at the South Gauteng High Court sitting in the Palmridge Magistrate's Court, Qoqo pointed to the fact that all the supposed crimes were committed during the day on the school's premises when there were many witnesses around.
"How possible is it that this (alleged sexual violations) would happen in front of people?" Qoqo asked.
She added that school staff which were called to testify, including a teacher and the principal, had said "it was impossible for these children to be touched" during school hours and not be noticed by people.
"(The principal) also said there were cameras which were working and she was monitoring them," Qoqo said.
Asked by Judge Peet Johnson whether it was possible for the principal to have monitored the cameras at all times, Qoqo asserted: "There were too many of them (alleged victims) for her (the principal) to have missed it."
The defence lawyer charged that all 13 complainants, except for one, had not remembered the dates of the alleged abuses, that most of the girls had contradicted themselves on the stand relative to the statements which they gave to police last year, which, Qoqo contended, was a sign of coaching.
Qoqo reasoned that the children "were caught up in a feud between adults and the principal", who, the lawyer added, was not wanted by a faction of teachers who resented the principal and wanted the old headmaster to return.
Molefe has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
The trial continues.