Los Angeles, Nov 6 : Throughout the sexual assault trial of Indian fashion designer Anand Jon, the evidence produced by the prosecutors has only raised the level of skepticism about their side of the story.

The 34-year-old was originally indicted on 59 counts, involving 20 alleged victims. His charges included, rape, sexual exploitation of a child, sexual battery and forcible oral copulation, reports LA Weekly.

However, during the trial, most of the charges were dropped. The number has got whittled down to its present 23 counts involving nine women.

Now, the trial has left court watchers wondering just how bad those deleted witnesses must have been, given the shaky performance of several of the prosecution''s background witnesses and accusers who did appear during the trial. Majority of them said that they ‘can’t recall’ anything.

Some other troubling aspects of the prosecution are:

• The rape examinations of the alleged victims could not establish that non-consensual sexual activity had occurred.

• For all the name-dropping of the date-rape drug GHB, no traces of the drug were ever tested positive among beverages found at Jon''s apartments.

• A DNA test of a tampon belonging to alleged victim Jessie B established the presence of Jon''s DNA but couldn''t, of course, create a narrative of the couple''s sexual encounter. This kind of ambiguity lies at the center of the D. A.''s case because if the couple''s coupling had been consensual, then no crime was involved.

• Porn troves found on his computers came from commercial sites. The fact that these sites had names like Gag on My Cock and Teens Tits & Ass doesn''t make them illegal kiddie porn Web sites or newsgroups.

• Prosecutors have harped on Jon''s alleged pattern of forcing alcoholic drinks on some of his under-aged female guests but, minus evidence of GHB, the trial narrative hasn''t necessarily established this as an obsessive habit of the designer.

Now, Jon’s fate is in the hands of a Los Angeles jury, for it has started deliberations on the charges of sexual assault levelled against him.

The jury of six men and six women are expected to deliver a verdict in the next few days.

If convicted of all charges, Jon will have to face a maximum sentence of life in prison. (ANI)