Gloriavale leader, Howard Temple, is standing trial in Greymouth District Court, on historic sexual abuse allegations spanning 1998-to-2022

The 85-year-old leader of the remote Lake Haupiri Christian community is accused of assaulting nine girls and women aged nine-to-20.

Claims include unwanted touching, hugging and kissing, inside communal areas.

Temple denies anything sexual occurred.

This follows a three-year police investigation into the Gloriavale community.