Sunday, February 8, 2026
ADVT 
National

Defence continues cross-examining complainant at hockey players' sex assault trial

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 09 May, 2025 11:03 AM
  • Defence continues cross-examining complainant at hockey players' sex assault trial

A woman who alleges she was sexually assaulted by five former members of Canada's world junior hockey team is facing more questions today on what happened at a downtown London, Ont., bar where she first encountered some of the accused.

The woman, who cannot be identified under a publication ban, has been on the stand since last Friday in the trial of Michael McLeod, Carter Hart, Alex Formenton, Dillon Dube and Callan Foote.

All five have pleaded not guilty to sexual assault, and McLeod has also pleaded not guilty to an additional charge of being a party to the offence of sexual assault.

defence lawyer for Formenton is cross-examining the woman today on the time she spent at Jack's bar on June 18, 2018, before leaving with McLeod to go to the hotel where he and his teammates were staying.

Court has heard McLeod and several other members of the 2018 world junior team went to the bar that night after attending a gala celebrating their championship victory.

The woman has testified that she and McLeod had sex in his hotel room, an encounter that is not part of the trial, and that she was naked and afraid when men she didn't know started coming into the room afterward.

She described going on "autopilot" and feeling like she was watching herself from outside her body as she engaged in sexual acts with the men.

The defence, meanwhile, has suggested the woman asked McLeod to call his friends into the room because she wanted a "wild night," and that she later invited the men to have sex with her.

Picture Courtesy: THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nicole Osborne

MORE National ARTICLES

Confused about tariff deadlines? Here's what we know right now

Confused about tariff deadlines? Here's what we know right now
The trade war between the U.S. and Canada took another turn Tuesday as U.S. President Donald Trump vowed to double the tariff on steel and aluminum imports coming from Canada in response to Ontario's surcharge on electricity exports. Trump said 50 per cent tariffs will be placed on Canadian steel and aluminum starting Wednesday, up from the 25 per cent tariffs that had been expected to apply to those materials.

Confused about tariff deadlines? Here's what we know right now

PM-designate Carney demands respect from U.S. as Trump doubles tariffs

PM-designate Carney demands respect from U.S. as Trump doubles tariffs
Prime minister-designate Mark Carney says he will keep Canadian retaliatory tariffs in place until "Americans show us respect" and commit to free trade again. Carney is reacting after U.S. President Donald Trump moved today to double incoming tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum, which Carney calls an attack on Canadian workers and businesses.

PM-designate Carney demands respect from U.S. as Trump doubles tariffs

Doctors thrust into COVID-19 celebrity reflect on backlash, threats and Thank You letters

Doctors thrust into COVID-19 celebrity reflect on backlash, threats and Thank You letters
Doctors who were thrust into national fame when COVID-19 hit five years ago say they try to focus on positive feedback from the public rather than the angry backlash and threats of violence they faced. British Columbia public health chief Dr. Bonnie Henry still has a security detail to this day because of threats against her and her family from people angry about lockdowns or opposed to COVID vaccination. 

Doctors thrust into COVID-19 celebrity reflect on backlash, threats and Thank You letters

Carney's win kills Liberals' much-delayed plan to change capital gains tax

Carney's win kills Liberals' much-delayed plan to change capital gains tax
Mark Carney's victory in the Liberal leadership race puts the final nail in the coffin of Ottawa's controversial plan to hike the inclusion rate on capital gains. When they tabled their budget last spring, the federal Liberals presented the plan to change capital gains as a way to get wealthy Canadians and corporations to pay more — but the plan has faced a series of delays ever since.

Carney's win kills Liberals' much-delayed plan to change capital gains tax

Trudeau pushes for RCMP reform during final days in office

Trudeau pushes for RCMP reform during final days in office
During his final days in office, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is pushing for long-promised reform to the RCMP.  A government report released Monday, which highlights concerns about Canada's capacity to meet "the new threat environment," says it's time to modernize the police service to focus on "the most serious forms of criminality."

Trudeau pushes for RCMP reform during final days in office

Liberal leadership race raises questions about possible fundraising 'loophole'

Liberal leadership race raises questions about possible fundraising 'loophole'
Only two of the candidates in the Liberal leadership race — Mark Carney and Ruby Dhalla — disclosed their fundraising events to Elections Canada. A political transparency advocate says this exposes a "loophole" in the rules for funding political campaigns that needs to be closed — since some of the contenders held fundraisers without publicly disclosing them or reporting who attended.

Liberal leadership race raises questions about possible fundraising 'loophole'