Update

PLETTENBERG BAY NEWS - The 39-year-old Plettenberg Bay man who faces 14 charges including grooming, sexual assault and statutory rape will have to wait until 4 September to find out the date of his regional court hearing.

Appearing briefly in the Plettenberg Bay Magistrate's Court on Friday 11 August, the man, who cannot be named until he has pleaded to the charges, replaced his legal representative, John Gillespie, who previously represented him during a failed bail application. 

Gillespie informed Magistrate S Lourens that his mandate had been withdrawn. Gillespie has been replaced by Carl Jeppe, another Plettenberg Bay attorney.

The accused faces charges of sexual assault; sexual exploitation of children; statutory rape; consensual sexual penetration of a child under age of 16 years; and contravention of the Prevention and Combating of Trafficking in Persons Act. 

All the alleged victims were minors between the ages of 13 and 16 years. Lourens was told by prosecutor Andiswe Mdobhisa that the state had not yet completed its investigations and she requested a postponement to 4 September, which was granted.

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