A MAN accused of 12 sex offences against children was “only checking a girl’s temperature” during one of the alleged incidents, a court heard today.
Jurors at Oxford Crown Court were told Edward Wakelin, 35, of Humfrey Road, Barton, touched the girl on her body to make sure she “wasn’t too hot”.
The former Oxford Bus Company worker denies five charges of sexual assault on a child under 13, six charges of indecent assault of a child and one of indecency with a child. The offences are alleged to have occurred between March 1995 and December 2008.
Jeannie Mackie, defending, said: “It is quite normal to check a child’s temperature by touching their body.
“Could he have accidentally touched her intimately? I would submit yes. When he picked her up he may also have accidentally touched her private parts. He has big hands, and maybe doesn’t have the lightest of touches. But Neil Moore, prosecuting, told the jury that while accidents could happen, for incidents to occur on more than one occasion was “pretty unusual”.
Judge Mary Jane Mowat halted her summing up after a juror fell ill this afternoon.
She was due to resume tomorrow morning.
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