An "overly energetic" swimming teacher warned about his "hands on approach" continued to sexually touch young female students at a Sydney swim school, a court has been told.
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Kyle James Henk Daniels, 22, has pleaded not guilty to 26 charges, including multiple counts of having sexual intercourse with a child under 10 and indecently assaulting a person under 16.
A District Court jury on Monday heard many students at Mosman Swim Centre requested to be moved out of Daniels' class.
One scrawled a note to her parents which read: "The reason I didn't like my swimming lesson was because my teacher touched my ...."
The missing word from the note was "vagina", the court was told.
One girl complained of being sexually touched while he was teaching her backstroke, and another said she was "thrilled to be moving up a class so she couldn't be touched on her private parts anymore".
In his opening address to the jury, crown prosecutor Karl Prince said Daniels touched several of his students on or near their genitals while teaching between February 2018 and February 2019.
"To other staff Kyle was an enthusiastic swim instructor ... made swimming fun for kids... one fellow staff said kids loved him," he said.
But underneath the water, Mr Prince said there was nothing accidental, clumsy or inadvertent in Daniels' actions, which were a result of deliberate and intentional touching.
In July 2018, a concerned parent approached staff saying their daughter had complained about her instructor touching below her chest and upper legs during a lesson.
Daniels' next class was observed without telling him why, and his superiors noted his "hands on" approach, his coaching style was too close contact and he appeared "overly energetic" and "too friendly with children in his class".
A memo was sent to all staff instructing teachers not to hold children close to the groin and chest area, and to always have their hands above water and appropriately positioned on the body.
Daniels along with other colleagues signed the letter of notification and returned it on August 2018.
But in February 2019, a seven-year-old girl wrote a note to her mother saying she felt uncomfortable during a lesson after Daniels "held her between the legs" while giving instructions in the pool's deep end.
She asked her mother if she could change swimming classes and swim centre management were notified of the parent's concern.
A police investigation was launched and Daniels was arrested in March 2019. After the case was publicised, six more girls raised similar incidents.
Some could not name Daniels, but described his blond hair and spectacles.
One girl said he digitally penetrated her up to five times in one lesson, and eight times overall before she moved to another class.
Defence lawyer Leslie Nicholls criticised the detective in charge of the case, saying she whipped up a disgraceful "media circus" and inappropriately influenced other complainants.
Mr Nicholls said his client strongly denied knowingly touching any of his alleged victims in a "sexual, indecent or unlawful manner whatsoever".
After the first allegations were brought to light, an experienced supervisor trawled through CCTV footage captured on seven high-definition cameras, but found no incriminating behaviour by Daniels, he said.
The Crown alleged Daniels was sexually interested in female swim school students aged between five and 10, and he had a tendency to opportunistically act on those desires despite a high risk of detection.
The trial continues before Judge Kara Shead.
Australian Associated Press