From the news desk

Hewitt trial continues

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The trial of Australian-born former tennis star Bob Hewitt, accused of rape and sexual assault, is expected to continue in the Johannesburg High Court, sitting in Palm Ridge, on Wednesday.

Hewitt is on trial for the rape of two of his former students, namely Theresa Tolken and Suellen Sheehan in the 1980s, and the sexual assault of a third, who may not be named, in the 1990s. He has pleaded not guilty. He gave tennis lessons to the girls.

On Tuesday, Hewitt told the court he had an alibi.

He said he had done a Google search and found he had been in Paris or London around the time Sheehan alleged he raped her.

Between May 24 and July 4, 1982, Hewitt said he had been commentating on the Wimbledon tennis tournament overseas. His co-anchor Jan Snyman could vouch for him, he told the court.

Sheehan testified Hewitt raped her in his car before tennis practice just before her 13th birthday in June 1982.

The court heard evidence from two journalists who interviewed Sheehan in 2011. Shaun Gillham of the Weekend Post testified that Sheehan told him Hewitt sexually assaulted her when she was nine.

Sheehan’s parents, Michael and Judy, testified on Tuesday. Judy Sheehan denied having any knowledge of her daughter having been raped. SAPA


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