A 55-year-old teacher at Valhalla Primary school in Centurion, Gauteng, has been granted R8,000 bail for allegedly sexually assaulting 24 of his learners aged between 10 and 14 years.
The teacher arrived back in the dock to hear his fate on Thursday after his defence argued on Wednesday that he should be granted bail.
The state opposed bail for his 24 counts of sexual assault against his learners.
Four other minor boys still need to give their statements against the 55-year-old teacher.
He faced seven counts of sexual assault in his previous appearance on Friday but this has risen to 24 counts in a matter of days, after more students have come forward.
Gauteng MEC of education Panyaza Lesufi was in attendance at the Pretoria Magistrate’s courtroom to hear the ruling.
READ MORE: ‘I’m a big boy’ – Valhalla Primary knew about abuse allegations
The court found there was no likelihood that the accused would be in contact with the pupils and school as he was suspended. They added that there was no evidence that he could evade trial. The two addresses he submitted to the court have been confirmed.
The court said it is in the interest of justice for the teacher to be granted bail.
After hearing his salary and expenses to determine bail amount, the court set bail at R8,000, after saying the proposed amount of R3,000 by the accused was too low for such charges.
The accused’s bail conditions include not being allowed to enter the Valhalla suburb in Centurion and to hand over his passport.
The matter was remanded to March 7 for further investigations.
Outside the court, Lesufi told media that the school is being investigated after allegations that the assaulted children reported their teacher to the deputy principal in July already. Evidence on Wednesday appeared to indicate the teacher was just reprimanded.