‘She fought back’: Suspect charged with sexual assault in Nanaimo, B.C.

A woman in Nanaimo, B.C., is being lauded for her tenacity and quick-thinking during an alleged sexual assault on Monday.

The 27-year-old said she was returning to her workplace around 1:20 p.m. when a strange man approached her from behind, grabbed her around the neck and groped her. She told police she broke free and ran to her office, where another employee was able to take a picture of the suspect before he fled, RCMP said in a Tuesday news release.

“The victim in this incident did everything correct. She fought back, she made noise, she told someone and reported the incident to the police,” Reserve Const. Gary O’Brien said in the release.

“Then, by using her phone, a picture of the suspect was shared across social media, which ultimately lead to his timely arrest.”

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Tips began to “pour in” after the survivor posted the photo online, leading to his arrest within 90 minutes of the alleged incident, RCMP said. He was found at a nearby home, Mounties added, and held in police custody over night.

The 35-year-old appeared in Nanaimo Provincial Court on Tuesday and was charged with one count of sexual assault. He has been remanded until April 4, the RCMP said.

The woman has since posted about her experience on Facebook. In one post, she said the suspect threatened her and chased her to her office door.

In a second, she said she would attend his Tuesday court date so her “voice is heard,” and the suspect would not be able to “walk the streets and hurt anyone else.” She also thanked the community for the support she has received in the past two days.

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In an interview, Nanaimo Area Public Safety Association interim chair Collen Middleton said he was “absolutely livid” to learn of this latest incident.

“This person was just going about their day – she works in mental health and addictions care … and for her troubles, she gets assaulted,” he told Global News.

“They’re literally playing Russian roulette right now with the lives of people that live in Nanaimo and we’re sick of it, we’re done.”

In a March 15 letter to Nanaimo’s mayor and council, Middleton called for urgent action to address “a sharp escalation” in health and safety concerns on Victoria Road — the same area the alleged incident took place Monday.

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He cited a spike in overdoses, accumulation of drug use paraphernalia on the streets, and increased “threatening and intimidating behaviours” towards residents along the road.

On Tuesday, Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth said he plans to visit Nanaimo “soon” to discuss the city’s safety concerns.

“Sexual assault is a horrific crime, and that’s why we’ve put in place a number of measures, (including) restoring funding for sexual assault centres,” he told Global News. “It’s also why we went to Ottawa and asked for changes to the Criminal Code to deal with repeat offenders as unintended consequences of Bill C-75 and see the reverse onus expanded.”

A search of the suspect’s name reveals multiple charges have previously been laid against him.

Bill C-75 is an act that amended the Criminal Code, modernizing and clarifying bail provisions, including a reverse onus provision that for certain crimes, places the onus on an accused person to demonstrate why they should be let out on bail as opposed to the default — a charter-protected right “not to be denied reasonable bail without just cause.”

Farnworth has said he wants the reverse onus expanded not only to cover offences where firearms are involved, but knives, bear spray and other weapons too, as well as offences in which the suspected has a history of use of weapons for violence