Malcolm Best hearing over sexual touching charges begins

A 75-year-old man allegedly touched a girl and asked a boy to show him his genitalia in the Hills and Sydney’s west, a court has heard.

Malcolm Best is fronting a hearing at Parramatta Local Court.

A 75-year-old man accused of “tickling” a girl’s “front bottom” twice in 2020 and asking a boy to show him his penis has fronted court for the first day of a hearing.

Kenthurst man Malcolm Best is fighting charges of intentionally sexually touching a girl between June and Boxing Day 2020.

At Parramatta Local Court on Thursday, the girl was cross examined and footage was played from her interviews with police in January 2021 and July last year.

The court heard how Mr Best allegedly touched her vagina through her clothing on Boxing Day at Kenthurst after he asked her to “come over here”.

The girl told police “he does it quite a lot when he’s around and no one’s looking”.

She alleged he told her “I’m allowed to do this” but stopped touching her with “his fingers” when someone walked past them.

She told the detective from the State Crime Command’s Child Abuse and Sex Crimes Squad Mr Best tickled her “private parts” with one hand while she was dressed in her underwear, shorts and a dress.

The hearing is at Parramatta Local Court.

At Toongabbie in October 2020, the court heard how Mr Best allegedly sexually touched her while she sat next to him at a table.

During an interview with police last year, a boy alleged Mr Best said “I also thought there was a possibility you should show me” his penis while they were at a property in Kenthurst on Boxing Day in 2018 or 2019.

“ … He said either ‘Do you want to, or you should or could you show me your penis?,’’ the boy told police in an interview aired to the court.

“And then I said ‘no’ and he said ‘It looked like it was hurting because you were rubbing it’ but I wasn’t rubbing it.’’

The court heard how the complainant did not tell his father immediately because he “thought it was casual” but he was “a little disturbed by it”.

During the girl’s cross examination, defence barrister Rob Steward suggested several people were around when Mr Best allegedly touched her on the two occasions.

Mr Best denies being alone at any time with the girl or sexually touching her.

He was charged with two counts of intentionally sexually touching a child under 10 years and intentionally inciting a child under 10 years doing a sexual act to them.

A decision is due to be delivered on April 21.