Raymond man to stand trial for sex assault

A 50-year-old Raymond man has been ordered to stand trial on four counts of sexual assault and one count of sexual interference in relation to decades-old offences against underage girls.

The accused, who can’t be named to protect the identity of the complainants, was committed to stand trial following the conclusion of a two-day preliminary hearing Friday in Lethbridge provincial court.

The hearing, to determine whether there is enough evidence to warrant a trial, heard testimony from three Crown witnesses, all complainants in the case.

Although evidence and testimony presented during the hearing cannot be published, police initially reported in January that they charged the accused following the allegations of sexual assaults in the 1980s and 1990s.

RCMP said that in September 2016 they were contacted by a woman who said she had been sexually abused as a child by a man known to her. The Picture Butte RCMP began an investigation into the allegations and additional women came forward to report they had also been assaulted.

The accused, who previously elected to be tried by a Court of Queen’s Bench judge without a jury, is scheduled to be arraigned Dec. 10. He also faces similar charges from his youth in relation to the same complainants, as well as one other one. He previously pleaded not guilty and is scheduled to stand trial in youth court in January.

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