The appellant, A S, was charged with the indecent assault of J A, a 16-year-old boy, on 30 March 2005 at A S’s Seven Eleven convenience store in Cloetesville. J A, the son of A S’s employee, testified that A S called him into his office, made sexually suggestive remarks, fondled his penis, and then sucked it. After the incident A S gave J A money and a cell phone starter pack and told him to keep quiet. J A soon thereafter reported the incident to his sister and grandmother, who contacted the police. J A was the sole eyewitness to the assault. A S denied the assault, claiming he merely gave J A money and a starter pack out of generosity. The regional court convicted A S of indecent assault, a decision upheld on appeal by the Western Cape High Court.
The appeal was dismissed and the conviction for indecent assault was confirmed.
This case reaffirms the South African approach to evaluating the evidence of a single and child witness in criminal trials, emphasising that caution must be applied without displacing common sense. It confirms that a conviction may properly be based on such evidence where it is found to be reliable and credible, and clarifies that a defence of consent requires an evidential basis.