London’s police chief on Monday apologized to the alleged victim of the 2018 World Juniors sexual assault case, saying it had taken “so long to get to this point”.
Chief Thai Truong apologized at a press conference in London, Ont., hours after the case first went to court.
“On behalf of London Police, I would like to sincerely apologize to the victim and her family for the length of time it has taken to get to this point,” he told reporters present. She was 20 years old at the time of the sexual assault charges. She said she prefers to be called that.
“As a police officer who has worked in this field for many years, I can tell you that this is a difficult situation for all victims and survivors of sexual violence,” he continued.
“It shouldn’t take years to reach today’s results.”
Lawyers for Dillon Dube, Cal Foote, Alex Formenton, Carter Hart and Michael McLeod appeared briefly in a London, Ont., courtroom virtually on Monday. They did not file a petition.
The hockey players were charged with sexual assault late last month. McLeod faces an additional charge of sexual assault for being “a party to a crime,” court documents show.
Det. Sergeant Catherine Dunne of London Police’s Sexual Assault and Child Abuse Unit revealed that the second charge related to McLeod’s “assistance of another person’s crime”.
None of the allegations have been proven in court. The case is scheduled to return to court on April 30th.
Lawyers for the players said their clients would defend themselves against the allegations.
The charges stem from an alleged gang sexual assault involving a woman identified in court records as “EM” after a Hockey Canada gala event in London in June 2018.
The police investigation initially closed without charges months after the alleged incident, but the case was reopened in May 2022 after TSN reported that Hockey Canada had privately settled a civil suit with the complainant. The investigation was reviewed.
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“We have also spoken to additional witnesses and gathered further evidence,” Dunn said Monday. “We can confirm that some of this evidence was not available at the time the investigation concluded in 2019.
“This is one investigation, not two.”
Mr. Dang and Mr. Truong repeatedly declined to comment on why the investigation took years to bring charges. In response to a reporter’s question, the police chief said the question of “why it took so long” would be part of the legal process.
Truong said members of the initial investigation team have not been involved in the case since the investigation was resumed.
“I would like to make it clear that the victims in this case have fully participated in this investigation from the time it was first reported to police until today,” he said.
Dunn said there had been “various levels of participation in the investigation” by individuals since the probe was reopened, but he declined to say who was cooperating and who was not.
In testimony to a parliamentary committee in 2022, Hockey Canada executives told MPs that members of the 2018 World Junior Team were not required to participate in an initial investigation conducted internally by the organization through a hired company and that all players He said he had not spoken to investigators.
Four of the players charged currently play in the NHL.
Last month, all five players’ clubs announced that they had been granted indefinite leave, but made no mention of London.
Dube is currently on leave from the Calgary Flames, Hart from the Philadelphia Flyers, and McLeod and Foote from the New Jersey Devils. Formenton, who previously played for the Ottawa Senators, is on leave from the Swiss team.
In a statement, the Flames said Dube was on leave “while attending to his mental health” and was “under the care of medical professionals.”
The Flames later said the team was “not aware of the pending charges at the time Dillon’s request for leave was granted.”
NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said last week that the league would wait to comment until the criminal proceedings are over. The Devils and Flyers referred questions regarding the incident to the NHL. Hockey Canada has not released an official statement regarding the charges.
News of Hockey Canada’s settlement with the victims triggered intense scrutiny of the organization, ultimately leading to the resignation of the entire board and leadership team. Hockey Canada and the NHL have also launched their own investigations.
Mr Dunn said the police investigation had been “complicated” due to duplication of investigations, but he did not elaborate.
Hockey Canada announced late last year in November that the final report of an independent adjudication panel investigating the sexual assault allegations would not be released pending an internal appeals process.
Henein Hutchison LLP’s report also remains sealed throughout the adjudication process, which itself was held in private. The investigation was restarted after the 2022 TSN report.
All players on the 2018 World Junior Team remain suspended by Hockey Canada and are ineligible to play, coach or otherwise participate in Hockey Canada sanctioned events (including international competitions) until the appeal process is completed, the organization said. said.
— With files from Global News’ Shallima Maharaj and The Canadian Press
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