Dead Sevenoaks teacher Gerd Sommerhoff accused of sexual abuse Sevenoaks Chronicle, Thursday, November 08, 2012 By Alice Hemmings alice.hemmings @sevenoaks-chronicle.co.uk AN EX-Sevenoaks School pupil has accused a former teacher of sexual abuse. Eminent scientist Gerd Sommerhoff, who taught at the school for decades until 1984, allegedly molested the student after grooming him for several weeks. ​'NOT APPROACHED': Sevenoaks School has said it would be happy to assist police Stuart Neilson, who attended the school for seven years from autumn 1975 to summer 1982, claims Mr Sommerhoff – who died in 2002 – abused him at the age of 12 in his private living quarters. Dr Neilson, now a father of two and living in Ireland, has chosen to come forward and tell his story. He says he has been prompted to break his silence following the Jimmy Savile scandal. The former DJ, who died last year, is accused of abusing more than 300 youngsters. His victims have been encouraged to come forward following public outrage at the TV presenter's behaviour. Dr Neilson was a boarding pupil in Lambardes House in his first year, followed by a six-year stay in School House. He told the Chronicle he found his stay at the school an ordeal. He said: "It was very difficult. I was shy and found the boarding school atmosphere very stressful. "Sommerhoff had his private living area round the back of Lambardes House, with an archway overlooking it, and he would chat to me when I walked along the path. "He groomed me – he lent me books and chatted to me about my favourite books, too. It made me feel special." Following several months of this, Dr Neilson claims Mr Sommerhoff showed him some homosexual pornography in May 1976 before, days later, inviting him up to his flat, where the teacher allegedly said sexually explicit things to him, pulled the boy on to his lap, rubbed himself against him and fondled him. Dr Neilson recalled: "He forcibly held me by the neck and stuck his tongue inside my mouth. "I can still taste bacon mixed with cheap cognac and Café Crème cigarillos, and I can still feel his stubble scratching my face. "I still have nightmares occasionally, and have had panic attacks when I smell the cigarillos in public places. "Although I was frightened by what he did, I also had a terror of losing my only friendship in a hostile school. "I cried and he said he did not want to be friends with a cry-baby, and asked me if I wanted to act grown-up and be his friend. I ran away." Two days after the alleged assault, Dr Neilson said Mr Sommerhoff allegedly chased the pupil through part of the school and physically assaulted him, holding him by the throat while threatening to kill him if he ever told anybody about the abuse. Dr Neilson claimed Mr Sommerhoff also threatened to tell his schoolmates that the boy was a homosexual. A spokesman for Kent Police said: "On October 18, Kent Police received a report of historic sexual abuse, which is reported to have taken place in Sevenoaks between 1975 and 1976. "Officers are now making a number of enquiries following the allegation." Accuser confident others suffered MR SOMMERHOFF is said to have openly bullied Dr Neilson in front of his peers. The former pupil claims Mr Sommerhoff embarrassed him in class by making references to his sexuality. He said: "He frequently made references to sex in front of the students and once told us he'd bought a swan from Marrakesh and raped it. "There were endless jokes about him. The most popular one was 'Pass me another first year,' followed by a crude remark.. "One of his stories upset me so much I called him a paedophile and he just laughed it off." Dr Neilson claimed he was confident other boys were abused by Mr Sommerhoff. He admitted he did not report the allegations during his time at the school, adding : "I just didn't know who to tell. My parents were working in Ethiopia and I was ashamed to tell any other teachers. Sommerhoff's remarks about me meant that I was ostracised from my classmates. "It has caused me endless amounts of pain through my life. I am in counselling but it is difficult sometimes to deal with what happened. "The press coverage with Jimmy Savile has just brought it all flooding back." Scientist's appointment was 'a great coup' for then headmaster GERD Sommerhoff was born in Germany but by the onset of the Second World War was living in England. A great-grandson of German composer Robert Schumann, Mr Sommerhoff spent two years in an internment camp in Canada as a foreign national before he returned to the UK, where he taught at Oxford's Dragon School. In Brian Scragg's Sevenoaks School: A History, Mr Sommerhoff's taking up of a place at Sevenoaks School is described as then-headmaster Kim Taylor's "greatest coup". Mr Taylor made contact with the scientist in 1960 after hearing about his educational achievements and secured his teaching post by agreeing to build a special scientific Technical Activities Centre on the campus. Mr Sommerhoff supervised the building of the technology department in 1963, which was officially opened during a Royal visit from Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, in 1966. The centre's academic prowess resulted in an OBE for Mr Sommerhoff, who retired from teaching in 1984. He moved to Trinity College, Cambridge, and died on April 28, 2002. It is believed he has no living family. Read more: http://www.thisiskent.co.uk/Dead-Sevenoaks-teacher-Gerd-Sommerhoff-accused/story-17263435-detail/story.html Follow us: @thisiskent on Twitter