Five hockey pros face sexual assault charges stemming from their days on Canada’s world junior team in 2018 incident

CNN
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Four NHL players and one former NHL player are facing sexual assault charges in Canada in connection with the 2018 allegations, their lawyers announced Tuesday. It’s the latest development in a controversial case involving Canada’s national hockey governing body.

The charges relate to a woman’s accusation that multiple members of Canada’s world junior hockey team sexually assaulted her in London, Ont., in 2018. All five players being charged were members of that team at the time.

One of the players charged, former Ottawa Senators forward Alex Formenton, who now plays professionally in Switzerland, turned himself in to police in London on Sunday, his defense team announced. Other players indicted include New Jersey Devils center Mike McLeod, according to his attorney and club. Devils defenseman Cal Foote. Philadelphia Flyers goaltender Carter Hart. and Calgary Flames center Dillon Dube. Current NHL players have been instructed to surrender to authorities in connection with the charges, London police said.

The case gained widespread attention in May 2022, when Canadian broadcaster TSN reported that a woman had settled a lawsuit she brought against Hockey Canada (the governing body for hockey) and a member of a junior team for assault. Ta. A series of developments followed, including a parliamentary hearing in June 2022 regarding Hockey Canada’s handling of the case, and an announcement in July 2022 that London police and Hockey Canada would reopen the investigation.

Investigators are expected to explain the London police investigation and pending charges at a news conference scheduled for Monday.

Formenton “vigorously defends his innocence and asks that there be no rush to judgment without hearing all the evidence,” attorneys Daniel Brown and Lindsey Bode said in a release. Formenton, who played for the Senators in 2017, took an indefinite leave of absence from Swiss hockey club Ambry Piotta last week.

McLeod “denies any criminal wrongdoing,” his attorneys David Humphrey and Seth Weinstein said in a release. “He maintains his innocence and will defend himself vigorously.

Mr Foote’s lawyer said: “He is innocent of the charges and intends to defend against these allegations in order to clear his name.” “The most important thing at this time is the presumption of innocence and the right to a fair trial that everyone in Canada is entitled to.”

Mr. Hart is “innocent and intends to fully answer to these false allegations in the appropriate forum,” his attorneys Riaz Sayani and Megan Savard said in a joint release.

Dube “maintains his innocence and maintains his innocence” and will “defend the allegations in court,” his attorneys Louis P. Strezos and Kaylee Davidson said Tuesday, according to ESPN. CNN has reached out to Dubé’s attorney for comment.

The Flames are “aware of the sexual assault allegations that have been made against Dillon Dube,” the club announced Tuesday. “We take this matter very seriously. As this matter is currently in legal proceedings, we will not be commenting further at this time.”

The Flames announced on January 21 that Dube had been “placed on an indefinite leave of absence from the team to attend to his mental health.” On Tuesday, the club said it had “no knowledge of any pending charges at the time Dillon’s request for leave was granted.”

The Devils, for whom McLeod and Foote play, are “aware of the reports” and have been “directed to refer all inquiries regarding this matter to the league,” the team told CNN on Tuesday.

The NHL declined to comment to CNN on Tuesday. CNN has also reached out to the woman’s lawyer and Hockey Canada for comment.

Hockey Canada apologized for its handling of the lawsuit in 2022

In June 2022, one month after TSN’s report, the Government of Canada announced that Hockey Canada would be required to wait until Hockey Canada submits the full results of its original two-year investigation and a plan to implement changes within Hockey Canada. announced that it would freeze federal public funding.

At a June 2022 parliamentary hearing, Hockey Canada executives said they were notified of the incident the day after the incident that allegedly occurred in 2018.

“We immediately began the investigation process, starting by contacting the police.
We commissioned an independent investigation and appointed an independent tribunal of judges to consider its findings,” former Hockey Canada CEO Tom Rennie testified. mentioned in.

Rennie acknowledged at the hearing that Hockey Canada settled a civil lawsuit brought by female players in April 2022, but did not disclose the amount of the settlement.

In July 2022, Hockey Canada released a letter apologizing for its inadequate response to the assault allegations and said it would reopen an internal investigation. Three months later, the organization announced that its CEO and board of directors would be replaced.

CNN’s David Close contributed to this report.