A TEENAGE girl broke down in court as she recounted the day that her former schoolteacher allegedly indecently assaulted her.The girl, who is now 17, but was 16 at the time of the alleged incident between July 14 and August 14 last year, had just told Bury St Edmunds Crown Court that she was scared to rebuff the advances made by East Bergholt High School teacher Frank Schmidt.

A TEENAGE girl broke down in court as she recounted the day that her former schoolteacher allegedly indecently assaulted her.

The girl, who is now 17, but was 16 at the time of the alleged incident between July 14 and August 14 last year, had just told Bury St Edmunds Crown Court that she was scared to rebuff the advances made by East Bergholt High School teacher Frank Schmidt.

Schmidt, 34, a religious studies teacher, denies two counts of indecent assault on a female.

On day two of Schmidt's trial, the girl, who cannot be identified for legal reasons told the jury during cross examination that she didn't want to appear rude after the teacher had visited her in the summer after she had left school.

Schmidt is alleged to have made a "surprise visit" on the girl in Ipswich early one morning before carrying out the first of the indecent assaults.

After Julian Christopher, representing Schmidt, had questioned the girl at length about that morning, she replied in a flood of tears: "I know it sounds ridiculous but I didn't want to appear rude. I didn't want to get in trouble. I was frightened he would tell me off. He was my teacher. He still had authority over me. He still had control."

Mr Christopher asked the girl about her and Schmidt's behaviour at an end-of-term prom night in June.

The girl, who is a Christian, told the court that she had given her contact details to three fellow Christian teachers, including Schmidt, of George Street, Hadleigh,

The former East Bergholt high pupil alleged that Schmidt had suggested to her at the prom night that he should "come around and see if her room was tidy".

Referring to the morning of the first visit to her room by Schmidt, the girl said she was surprised when staff where she was staying told her that she had a visitor.

She said: "I accept that I gave the impression that I was OK with the situation. I was shocked more than anything. I don't agree that any teacher should walk into the bedroom of a 16-year-old girl dressed in her dressing gown at 8.30 in the morning. It wasn't a pleasant surprise.

"I was still dazed. I felt uncomfortable with what I was wearing. I was confused as I had only just woken up."

The "surprise" reference stemmed from a conversation Schmidt is alleged to have had with staff at the hostel when he told them he had "travelled a long way to make a surprise visit."

The girl told the court that Schmidt had initially told her he was taking her shopping but they spent the day tidying her room. It is during this period he is alleged to have indecently assaulted her.

The girl said that although the incidents had occurred in July or August, she didn't want to tell the police about them until after she had attended a graduation event at the school in November last year.

She later told the court that she had developed a drug problem directly after the incident and had started taking ecstasy and cannabis.

The case continues.