Monk hit with more abuse charges: court
A senior Victorian Buddhist monk is facing a new allegations of child sexual abuse after media reporting earlier this year.
Wearing traditional orange robes, Vijitha Naotunne, 68, appeared in the Melbourne Magistrates Court via videolink from his lawyer’s office on Friday.
Representing Mr Naotunne, Joanne Poole said they intended to fight the allegations, which he denied had occurred.
Mr Naotunne, who is the chief monk at the Dhamma Sarana Buddhist Sri Lankan Temple, was charged in August over alleged child sexual abuse of three girls dating back as far as the mid-1990s.
In September, Victoria Police revealed two more alleged victims had come forward following media reports of his first court appearance in August.
According to charge documents released by Magistrate Donna Bakos on Friday, Mr Naotunne is now facing seven new charges of indecent act with a child under 16 – resulting in a total of 20 charges.
Two charges are dated between 1994 and 1995, two are alleged to have occured in 2001 and three others are said to have occurred between 2001 and 2002.
He was charged with nine counts of sexual penetration of a child under the age of 16 and four counts of indecent act with a child under 16.
At the time, police alleged Mr Naotunne came in contact with the children through his role at a temple.
The incidents allegedly took place between 1996 and 2004 and involved school items, including a pink eraser and plastic ruler.
Mr Naotunne will return to court in December.
