A chemistry teacher has been found guilty of indecently assaulting two teenage boys who were her pupils in incidents dating back to the late 1980s.
Sally-Anne Bowen, 65, was convicted of seven counts of indecent assault against the two boys, who were aged around 14 to 15 at the time, following a trial at Harrow Crown Court. She taught at the all-boys Christ's College in Finchley, north London.
Allegations of sexual activity
One complainant alleged he had sex with the teacher "about 20 or 30 times" over several months, would visit her at her home, considered her to be his girlfriend and had fallen in love. The defence labelled him a "fantasist", but he denied the accusation, saying some of the sexual acts Bowen asked him to participate in were "perverse".
He told jurors he kept the relationship secret because he felt compelled to "protect" the teacher, who had "drummed it" into him that he was not allowed to tell anyone. "I never, ever spoke to anyone about it," he told the court. "I was always really aware, she drummed it into me. Years she got to teach, because I remained silent."
Second complainant and witness testimony
The second complainant alleged he and Bowen kissed once in a café when he was "goaded" into it by other boys. Neither of the victims was named.
Another pupil, named as Tobias Oliver, said she was not the average teacher. "She dressed and behaved more like my teenage female friends than the other teachers," he told the jury. "The topics of conversation in class often strayed away from chemistry and became quite sexual."
Defence and conviction
In her evidence, Bowen denied ever interacting with pupils in a sexual or inappropriate manner, describing the first complainant's allegations as "total fabrication". "There was no sexual activity, he's made this story up," she told jurors, adding: "I think he certainly had a crush on me at school."
In her first police interview in January 2015, Bowen described the first complainant as "a nuisance" and "besotted", and said his accusations formed part of "a fantasy", jurors were told. A jury has now found her guilty of seven counts of abuse. She is yet to be sentenced.
