A swimming instructor in the southern city of Den Bosch who is under suspicion of having sexually assaulted 98 pupils is also being charged with rape, the public prosecutor has confirmed. The children, all girls, were aged between six and sixteen.

The 59-year-old man was taken into custody for three months on Tuesday. The addiitonal charged introduced on Friday means custody can be extended to six months.

Justice authorities say there is no evidence so far that the man actually raped any of his pupils. Tens of thousands of photographs the man took of pupils in sexually explicit poses were found on computers in his home. The prosecutor says not all the photos have been examined yet.

The instructor specialised in swimming lessons for children with mental or social disabilities and learning difficulties. The case has upset thousands of parents in Den Bosch, who were invited by the local authorities to meetings where details about the case were revealed. Angry parents assembled near the instructor's home on Wednesday evening in an apparent desire for revenge.

At the request of the suspect's wife, their house was vacated under police protection. She has moved to an unknown location and the house now stands empty.