Phuket Court Dismisses Sex Case Against PIA Teacher

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Phuket Court dismisses sex case against PIA teacher

PHUKET: -- ABC News reports that child sexual assault charges against a Tasmanian teacher working in Phuket have been dropped.

Andrew Clements, 51, was arrested in March for the alleged assault on a four-year-old boy.

The teacher strongly denied having committed the offence, alleged to have taken place while he was employed at the prestigious Phuket International Academy (PIA).

He had been dismissed from the school in December 2009, but the school told the Phuket Gazette on March 30 this year that there was "absolutely no connection between his dismissal from the school and the criminal charge which he now faces."

When Mr Clements appeared in Phuket Provincial Court for a hearing on Monday (June 14), he was simply told that the charge against him had lapsed due to lack of evidence.

Yesterday, ABC News reported that Mr Clements had been inundated with calls from the media, and that he was no longer commenting because he was sick of the attention.

The Advocate newspaper in Australia had in March reported that Mr Clements was a former professional basketball player who represented his country, and that a former Tasmanian teammate had told the paper he was “shocked, just shocked, to hear the allegations.”

“There will be a lot of people in basketball that know Clemo that would be thinking that would not be true,” he said.

-- Phuket Gazette 2010-06-17

[Rucharee]

The charge against him had lapse?

The charge against PAD is almost 2 years, and why has it not lapse yet. It should be.

[Roob]

How does this poor mans name get plastered in the papers if there is a lack of evidence? Hope he can find some way to forgive this system.

[badgerbailey]

The charge against him had lapse?

The charge against PAD is almost 2 years, and why has it not lapse yet. It should be.

Because there is tons of evidence to suggest that the PAD are guilty of everything they did. I am shocked and appaled that they are all not in jail now, especially Sondhi and Kasit for that matter. Terrorists the lot of them.

[Scott]

This topic is about the teacher. Further comments about the PAD will result in warnings.

Please stay on-topic.

[jayjayjayjay]

So the article plasters the name of an innocent man for all public to see! TIT i guess! If he was guilty then I hope a 10 wheel truck runs over him, should he be innocent I hope he can live a peaceful life. Only he knows!

[geriatrickid]

I have the impression that someone had a petty grudge and/or that an extortion attempt failed.

[TAWP]

Plasting his name all over is so wrong...