HALIFAX — A 47-year-old man charged in an aggravated sex assault near the Halifax Commons has a long history of sexual violence and had earlier prompted a warning to the public about his "high risk" of re-offending.
Sem Paul Obed has a criminal record dating back to 1984 and more than 30 previous convictions, including attempted murder, sexual assault and assault with a weapon, police say.
He appeared in Halifax provincial court Monday and was also charged with choking to overcome resistance, uttering threats, break and enter and two counts of breaching court orders before being remanded in custody.
He was charged Saturday after a woman said she was sexually assaulted by a man who broke into a home on Cunard Street on Friday morning.
The suspect fled the home before the woman contacted police at about 11:50 a.m. Obed was arrested at a home in the Fairview area less than five hours later.
"It is a very concerning and upsetting and disconcerting situation to happen in broad daylight," Halifax police Const. Carol McIsaac said Monday.
Police issued a high-risk offender notification in 2014 when Obed was released from federal prison, which noted he was "professionally assessed as a very high risk to reoffend in a sexual and violent manner."
He was released on several conditions, including an order to abstain from alcohol and to remain in his residence between the hours of 9 p.m. and 6 a.m.
"We do send out the high-risk notifications for that reason, we want the community to be aware," McIsaac said.
"These mechanisms are in place in order to keep an eye on these people and high-risk offenders ... Unfortunately this situation still (allegedly) happened."
In August 2016, there was a peace bond with multiple conditions issued against Obed for two years that flagged him as a high-risk offender and required him to report weekly to a member of the Halifax police High-Risk Enforcement Action Team unit.
Two of his current charges are a result of alleged breaches of that court order.
Obed is scheduled to return to court on June 20 at 9 a.m. for an election and plea hearing.
