Parents are opposed to bail being granted to a Durban teacher charged with sexually assaulting pupils.

The 55-year old man, who cannot be named because he has not yet pleaded, is alleged to have raped or attempted to rape at least four pupils from a high school in Clermont, west of Durban, where he was employed as a commerce teacher.

The teacher appeared in the Pinetown magistrate's court on Wednesday for his formal bail application.

He faces eight charges — six of rape, one of sexual grooming and one of exposing a pupil's genitals to another pupil.

He was arrested on April 23 at the school premises for allegedly raping a 16-year-old pupil, according to police spokesperson Const Thenjiswa Ngcobo.

After his arrest, more people opened cases against him.

The state opposed bail and called for the teacher to be remanded pending the outcome of the case.

Defence attorney Mxolisi Mkhize said the accused should be granted bail because he has a chronic illness.

“He has type 2 diabetes and underlying illnesses, including migraines. He is also likely to face an internal hearing from the department of education that will not be conducted fairly if he’s incarcerated,” he said.

Asked by the magistrate to explain how the hearing would be unfair if the accused was to be denied bail, Mkhize said his client would not get enough time to consult lawyers throughout the process.

“As a first-time offender with no pending cases against him before this case and no DNA evidence linking him to the crimes, the prejudice he’s likely to suffer in case of incarceration will affect his rights,” said Mkhize.

Const Siboniso Mtshali, the investigating officer, submitted an affidavit opposing bail.

Mtshali said the applicants and witnesses in the case would be afraid to come forward if he was released.

It would be in the teacher’s own interest to remain behind bars as the community of Clermont was angry with him.

“The complainants were afraid to come forward because of previous threats, but more people have come forward since his arrest and we have reason to believe that even more may come [if he is not granted bail]. The victim also reported the matter late to the police because she was afraid,” he said.

Since the teacher’s arrest the case has raised a lot of attention in the Clermont community.

Pupils with placards have demonstrated outside the court.

Mkhize said the accused would be willing to relocate and stay away from Clermont during the trial.

“There is no evidence supporting threats by my client, so it’s just hearsay. Nonetheless, those fears can be addressed as my client is willing to relocate to live with his brother and abide by any bail condition given by the court,” he said.

The accused is a married man with seven children, including three in university, who all depend on his salary.

“He is a professional with full-time employment who has four minors and four others dependent on him. It’s hard to find employment in SA and these matters are likely to drag on for a long time,” said Mkhize.

However, the prosecutor said there were hospitals in Westville where the accused could get medication.

“He was supposed to play a parental role to the pupils, but he took advantage of that.”

A decision on bail is expected to be made on Friday.

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