'Satanist' may reopen case

2003-04-10 23:46

Pretoria - An alleged Satanist, accused of repeatedly molesting three Pretoria children, may reopen his case to call an expert to testify on children who invent incidents of molestation.

Deon Hugo, counsel for tattoo artist and alleged Satanist Robin Malcolm Classen, 38, said on Thursday he needed time to explore the possibility of calling an expert witness to testify about this.

Hugo had come across an American case in which an alleged serial child molester was acquitted as a result of such evidence.

Classen has pleaded not guilty to ten charges regarding his alleged abduction, rape, indecent assault and torture of a seven-year-old Pretoria girl and her brothers, aged nine and 11, between January and September 2000.

The three children testified in camera through an intermediary last year.

Heavily tattooed Classen, has denied their evidence, saying he had never abducted or molested any children. He could not explain why the children would make up such "wild tales" about him and felt he was being persecuted because of his appearance.

Hugo earlier argued that the children and their mother could not distinguish between fantasy and truth and their evidence was far-fetched and should be rejected.

Hugo said the children's mother - who described a serious of strange and inexplicable events at her home, including her children going into trances, talking about devils and one of her sons chasing his siblings with an axe - was "gullible".

Her prayer meetings to free her children from evil had probably left an indelible impression on them, Hugo argued.

A police occult expert testified during the trial that Classen had told her he was possessed by demons, but he denied this and said he had no more than a passing interest in the occult, although the tattoos all over his body, including a few on his penis, had a mostly "evil" theme.

The trial was postponed to July 14.

- SAPA