Midlands sexual abuse scandal: Hilton man faces fresh charges
· Citizen
A teenage girl has laid a criminal complaint against a Hilton man accused of widespread sexual misconduct, as another 17 women came forward with allegations against him.
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The teenager’s complaint, involving four counts under the Sexual Offences Act, was registered at Hilton police station last week.
Midlands sexual abuse: more women come forward
It follows allegations that she was involved in a sexual relationship with the 32-year-old man while underage.
A second criminal case dating back to 2017 has also been reopened, with three counts under the same Act.
A Hilton police officer confirmed both dockets have been transferred to the Pietermaritzburg Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences Unit for investigation.
Private investigator Brad Nathanson, who has been gathering evidence against the man, said the number of women who have contacted him has now reached 77, up from 60 when The Citizen last reported on the scandal a fortnight ago.
“The allegations, if substantiated, could make this one of SA’s largest sexual misconduct investigations involving a single alleged perpetrator,” he said.
77 women identified same man
All 77 women had independently identified the same man without being prompted.
“Not even one gave me another name. I told them that they had to give me a name before I would speak to them,” Nathanson said.
The complainants include a woman who was 11 when she allegedly received an unsolicited sexually explicit photograph and another who was 70 at the time of her alleged encounter.
Relationship with underage girl
Nathanson said the teenager who opened the latest case had provided police with a lengthy affidavit detailing a relationship that allegedly continued for more than a year without her family’s knowledge.
The reopened 2017 case concerns historical allegations involving schoolgirls at a private school in the Midlands.
Nathanson said about 90% of the women who approached him had attended the same school, whose name is known to The Citizen.
Explicit photos sent to schoolgirls
Several complainants alleged they received unsolicited photographs of the man’s genitals while still in Grade 7 or 8 at the school, with the practice allegedly becoming so commonplace that some described it as an unofficial rite of passage.
Nathanson said he had received reports and photographs that a professional cleaning company had been brought in to clean the man’s outside bedroom at his parents’ property while the family was away. He claimed the crew spent an entire day cleaning the room.
The man’s mother allegedly teaches at another posh private school in the area.
Nathanson said the allegations stretched back approximately 18 years and raised serious questions about how the alleged conduct could have continued for so long without intervention.
Many of the complainants were now women with families of their own and were reluctant at first to revisit experiences dating back a decade or longer.
Nathanson also claimed the man had reportedly recently resumed contact with a woman who had previously blocked him after receiving sexually explicit messages. She reportedly unblocked him after seeing publicity surrounding the investigation and received further messages shortly afterwards.
According to Nathanson, Hilton residents were also keeping a close watch on the man’s movements.
“Some community members have been taking pictures of him and I keep getting updates,” he said. “They are waiting for law enforcement.”
Nathanson said the growing number of complainants suggested the full extent of the allegations might still be unknown.