The appellant was charged in the Klerksdorp Regional Court with housebreaking with intent to commit indecent assault and indecent assault. The complainant, a 13-year-old girl, alleged that on the night of 9 March 2001 the appellant, who was the boyfriend of her sister and known to her, unlawfully entered the main house after the occupants had left, entered her bedroom, and indecently assaulted her by touching her private parts and breasts. She escaped and later reported the incident to her sister, who confronted the appellant and called the police. The appellant denied entering the main house or assaulting the complainant, contending that he was either at a club or asleep in the backyard flatlet. The trial court rejected his version, convicted him, and sentenced him to five years’ imprisonment, half suspended. His appeal to the High Court was dismissed, and he appealed further to the Supreme Court of Appeal.