Chardon pleads not guilty to rape charges

A man charged with sexually assaulting a teenage girl in the late 1990s has pleaded not guilty in a Gold Coast court.

John William Chardon, 66, is facing eight charges including three counts of rape over alleged incidents with a girl when she was 14 and 15.

On the opening day of a five-day trial at the Southport District Court on Monday, Chardon pleaded not guilty to all charges.

His alleged victim is one of nine witnesses who will give testimony during the trial.