A 29-year-old Ottawa HIV-positive man accused of failing to disclose his health status was in judicial pretrial court today via video link from Ottawa Carleton Detention Centre (OCDC).
The accused, who now has long hair, was polite and said “thank you” when the judge remanded his next court appearance to Sept 9.
In Ottawa, the accused faces 21 charges, including four counts of aggravated sexual assault, three counts of sexual assault, four counts of attempt murder, four counts of administering noxious substance and six counts of breaching probation. Last month, he was granted bail, but it was overturned in Superior Court a week later before he was ever released.
In Kitchener, the accused is facing five charges, including three counts of aggravated sexual assault and two failure to comply. He has a bail hearing scheduled there via video link on Aug 27.
“I would be surprised if the Crown consented to releasing him in Waterloo,” his lawyer, Delinda Hayton, said last month.
The 24-year-old co-accused, who also allegedly failed to disclose his poz health status during a foursome, is facing two counts of aggravated sexual assault. He is currently on bail with house arrest conditions. Similar to the Ottawa case, the Crown has sought a publication ban on the accusers.
By next month’s court appearance, the accused will have spent more than four months behind bars. He has been transferred back and forth from OCDC and a Milton, Ontario, jail, where he has been in protective custody.
When he was arrested on May 6, he was charged with nine counts of aggravated sexual assault. This was after an18-year-old man accused him of not disclosing his health status before having unprotected sex. Since then, five more complainants have come forward.
Ottawa police set off nationwide debate after his photo was attached to an email sent out by the Police Liaison Committee with the phrase “sexual predator” attached to it.
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