KEY POINTS:
A Napier man has appeared in court charged with sex offences involving children of both genders, as well as a dog, a cow, a pig and a horse.
The man entered no pleas in Napier District Court yesterday to 17 charges, alleging offences as long ago as 1954, when he was a young teenager, and continuing until as recently as 1990.
The charges allege rape and other indecencies with young girls, sodomy with a cow, bestiality with a pig, an indecent act with a mare, and an indecent assault on a boy.
The offences are alleged to have happened in Napier.
The historic nature of the charges is highlighted by one alleging the man attempted to "carnally know" a girl under the age of 12 in the mid-1950s.
The former offence of carnal knowledge is now known as unlawful sexual intercourse or rape, depending on a complainant's age.
The man was granted interim name suppression of name and remanded on bail to appear in the court again on August 15.
A police investigation sparked by complaints at the end of 2005 saw inquiries extended overseas before the man was arrested and charged earlier this month.
- NZPA
