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Los Gatos Teen Testifies To Having Sex With Best Friend's Mother

LOS GATOS (KCBS) - A 17-year-old former Los Gatos High School student revealed in testimony Wednesday that he had sex with the mother of his best friend at least 30 to 40 times, much more than he had disclosed to police investigators.

The victim, identified in court as Matthew, testified that he was embarrassed to disclose the full extent of his relationship with 48-year-old Sara Cole and wanted to protect her.

The boy originally told detectives he had sex with her only three or four times. In his testimony, Matthew also admitted to stealing money from Cole, as well as his parents and sister, to buy marijuana. He is now enrolled in a Montana boarding school where he also receives psychological counseling.

KCBS' Mike Colgan Reports:

Cole is facing three felony counts of unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor and a misdemeanor count of annoying or molesting a child, said prosecutor Timothy Moore.

"The information alleges that the acts occurred beginning as early as April of 2010 and extending through July 15 of 2010," Moore said.

The boy testified that some of the incidents occurred at Cole's home while one of her sons was in another room. His parents learned of the relationship when they discovered sexually explicit text messages allegedly from Cole on his cell phone.

She has pleaded not guilty to the charges, instead characterizing her encounters with the boy as "intimate relations" rather than intercourse. The charges carry a sentence of as much as 4½ years in state prison.

Jurors will not be allowed to learn that Cole was nearly killed by a drunken driver three years earlier in 2007, an incident that led to an outpouring of community support.

Defense attorneys would not comment for this story, but Cole, free on $30,000 bail, is expected to testify in her own defense.

(Copyright 2011 by CBS San Francisco. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

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