A senior Buddhist monk has denied sexually assaulting six young girls at a Melbourne-Australia temple and has pleaded not guilty at his Victoria County Court trial.

The complainants, who are now in their 30s, allege that Naotunne Vijitha targeted them when they attended the Dhamma Sarana Temple in Melbourne’s south-east between 1994 and 2002.

Vijitha, who was the head monk at the temple, and who is on bail, has pleaded not guilty to nine charges of sexual penetration of a child and 10 charges of committing an indecent act with a child under 16.

On Wednesday (22), prosecutor Fiona Martin told the jury that the alleged offences took place at the temple’s initial headquarters in Springvale, and later at its purpose-built Keysborough site. The monk allegedly lured the girls to his living quarters and sexually abused them, Martin said. The Court was told that the abuse took place inside his living quarters, a Buddhist Temple prayer room and at Sunday school.

Vijitha denies the claims, with his barrister saying that there was “no middle ground” in the case.

The complainants were aged under 16 when the alleged offences occurred.

Some claimed that they were digitally penetrated by the monk, while others said that he inappropriately touched them or put their hand on his penis. One complainant allegedly said that the monk “apologised and told her not to tell anyone”, Martin told the jury. The prosecutor said that another complainant was assaulted after she entered the monk’s living quarters, believing that “he might have had some lollies on offer”. Martin said that one of the women reported Vijitha to the Police in 2005 but withdrew her complaint, before making a formal statement in 2022 during a new investigation. Martin said that some of the women had told others about the allegations when they were in school or when they were young adults. The youngest girls were aged four, and one claims that she was abused four times across two temple sites in Melbourne until she was aged 11 or 12. The girl attended regular Sunday school classes taught by Vijitha, who sexually abused her five times between the ages of nine and 11 inside his room at the Springvale temple, Martin alleged. Another girl alleged that Vijitha called her to his room when she was at the temple with her parents and held onto her as she tried to get away, before telling her “not to tell anyone”, the Court heard. 

A girl claimed that Vijitha pulled her into the main prayer area when she was four and allegedly placed his hands across her crotch, before asking her in Sinhalese: “You’re not angry, are you?” Another alleged victim claimed that Vijitha sexually abused her in his bedroom after she attended the temple for a ceremony on the anniversary of her grandmother’s death. Vijitha took the girl to his living quarters to show her a model of the temple and give her a religious book, then allegedly touched her inappropriately, Martin said. One of the girls reported the alleged abuse to a school counsellor in 2005, claiming that she had been touched by a monk at her Sunday school. Martin said that the counsellor reported it to the Police, however, the girl did not wish for it to be investigated at the time and she did not pursue the allegations until 2022.

The recent investigation into the monk was triggered by a Crime Stoppers report in 2021. By August 2023, six women had contacted the Police, the Court heard.

The women will be called to give evidence in the trial, which is set to run for about three weeks.

Vijitha came to Australia in 1994 to head up the temple, which was established by the local Sri Lankan community. Part of his role included holding Sunday school classes, the Court heard.

The 70-year-old, who was dressed in orange robes, listened to proceedings from the Court dock with the assistance of a Sinhalese interpreter on Wednesday.

Defence barrister, King’s Counsel Nicholas Papas described the allegations against his client as “improbable”, saying that the jury would need to consider things like the layout of the temple buildings when deciding if the monk could be found guilty beyond reasonable doubt. “He says he’s not guilty. He denies the charges. There’s no middle ground here,” Papas said. Papas said that it was natural for people to be repulsed by allegations of child sexual assault, but urged the jury to decide the case on the evidence presented in Court and to keep an open mind. “What the witnesses recall about what happened 25 or 30 years ago is a central question and how accurate and reliable that evidence will be,” he said. Papas said that his client was facing serious charges, and that the defence would be asking “questions that are difficult” of Vijitha’s accusers.

The trial continues before Judge Pardeep Tiwana.

(Australian Broadcasting Corporation News and The Age)