London Police special detective Katherine Dann addressing questions from the media
London Police Services (LPS) held a press conference today at the RBC Center downtown London, where Chief Thai Truong and Detective Sargent Katherine Dann, took questions in regards to the alleged sexual assault that took place in June of 2018.
Several media outlets came to the conference with multiple questions to ask the two members of LPS. Many asked why it took the police so long to complete the investigation and why the originally closed the case back in February 2019
“The initial investigation concluded without charges; it was determined by investigators at that time that there were insufficient grounds to lay a charge and this decision led to the case being closed” , said Truong.
XFM News asked Det. Sgt. Dann whether or not the police had been in contact with the NHL, but said that they had not been in contact with them for several months.
Upon further questioning, the police were tight lipped as to what they could say about the case in fear of compromising the ongoing investigation.
In the middle of the question period, Truong came forth commenting how external factors, like the over sexualization of young women and girls, contribute to violence against women
“There’s a widespread prevalence of violence towards women worldwide and one attributing factor and one complex thing that we need to address, is us as a society and community because the sexualization of young women and girls in today’s society is contributing to the violence against women”, said Truong
Truong apologized for the longevity it took the LPS while conducting the investigation and emphasized the courage of the victim, who wished to remain unnamed.
The police chief gave a detailed timeline to how London Police dealt with the investigation, from the time it was first opened in June of 2018 till February 2019.
Three years later LPS reopened the case at the request of now retired police chief, Steve Williams, in 2022. Upon conducting the reexamination of the case, LPS found grounds to lay charges against five players who were apart of the 2018 World Junior Canadian hockey team.
The players are charged as followed:
- Michael McLeod, 26 of Mississauga, ON: two counts of sexual assault
- Carter Hart , 25 of Cherry Hill, NJ: one counts of sexual assault
- Callan Foote ,25 of Denver, CO: one count of sexual assault
- Alexander Formington, 24 of Barry, ON: one count of sexual assault
- Dylan Dube, 25 of Calgary, AB: one count of sexual assault
All five players surrendered to LPS and appeared in a London court on the morning of the press conference, “These individuals have surrendered to the London Police Service and were released on undertakings with their first court appearance occurring this morning”, said Truong
The players legal teams have said all five plan to plead not guilty
Comments