Gerhard Ackerman, who faces hundreds of charges related to a child sex ring.
- Gerhard Ackerman, an alleged kingpin of a child sexual exploitation ring in Johannesburg, has pleaded not guilty to 740 charges.
- After the statement, the State called its first witness, a clinical psychologist who evaluated the alleged child victims.
- She has recommended that victims testify using a CCTV link so they are not physically in court.
The first witness in the trial of Gerhard Ackerman, alleged kingpin of a child sexual exploitation ring in Johannesburg, testified that some of the alleged victims need to testify through a video link with an intermediary.
Ackerman, 52, appeared before the Gauteng High Court in Johannesburg on Tuesday, where he pleaded not guilty to 740 charges.
The charges relate primarily to a child sexual exploitation ring he allegedly ran with the involvement of his former co-defendant, lead attorney and acting judge Paul Kennedy, according to the indictment.
Kennedy committed suicide before the trial began.
Ackerman has been charged with hundreds of counts of possession of child pornography, various counts of rape, sexual assaults, human trafficking and sexual grooming.
After pleading not guilty and offering no plea, the state’s attorney, attorney Valencia Dube, called her first witness, Colonel Kirsten Clark, to the stand.
READ | Child Sex Ring Case: Defendant Pleads Not Guilty to More Than 700 Charges
Clark, a clinical psychologist with the South African Police Service, had assessed the alleged victims.
She told the court that she conducted a psychological evaluation of the boys with a focus on their testifying in court, their ability to take an oath and their ability to consent to sexual intercourse.
Clark then reviewed the reports of six of them, citing their medical histories, mental challenges before and after the alleged crimes, and their competence to testify in court.
For example, in one report, he explained that the person had a troubled childhood and had attempted suicide before he was allegedly raped and attempted suicide a second time after the ordeal.
She testified that this child could also be considered a victim of human trafficking.
In all of his reports, he found that all of those mentioned would be competent witnesses, able to take an oath and informed consent.
He also found that they were vulnerable, and as such recommended that they all testify via a CCTV link, so they would not be physically in court.
READ | Paul Kennedy’s co-defendant in child sex ring case revealed in court
With some of them suffering from anxiety and panic attacks, he also recommended that they be allowed to testify through an intermediary.
This was not just the case for those who are still minors.
One boy, who was 9 when Ackerman allegedly accosted him, is now 24.
Clark discovered that he suffered from generalized anxiety disorder and would benefit from testifying via a CCTV link.
The trial was adjourned early Tuesday when the power went out in the courtroom.
Clark will continue to take the court through the victim reports on Wednesday.
