London Police Apologize to Woman in Long-Delayed Sexual Assault Case Involving Former World Junior Hockey Players

London, Ont., police Chief Thai Truong apologized on Monday for the six-year delay in laying sexual assault charges against five former members of Canada‘s 2018 world junior hockey team. The charges are related to an alleged incident in June 2018. Truong acknowledged the courage and strength it took for the woman, referred to as E.M., to come forward with her complaint.

The initial police investigation began shortly after the complaint was made in 2018, but it ended without any charges being laid in 2019. The case was reopened in 2022 by Truong’s predecessor, Chief Steve Williams, due to public outrage following a lawsuit. The new charges have been laid against Michael McLeod and Cal Foote, both currently playing for the New Jersey Devils, Dillon Dubé of the Calgary Flames, Carter Hart of the Philadelphia Flyers, and former NHL player Alex Formenton, who is now in Switzerland.

Towards the end of Monday’s news conference, Det. Sgt. Katherine Dann from the LPS’s sexual assault and child abuse unit spoke about the reopening of the case and the steps taken in the investigation. Dann mentioned that additional witnesses were interviewed, and new evidence was collected during the new investigation, which involved only one incident and one victim. The woman at the center of the investigation has fully cooperated throughout.

Hockey Canada issued a statement following the police news conference, stating that they have fully cooperated with the investigation. They also mentioned that a third-party adjudicative panel has completed its final report, but it cannot be released yet as it is the subject of an ongoing appeal filed in November. Hockey Canada expressed the need for meaningful change to ensure a safe and inclusive environment for all participants on and off the ice.

NHL commissioner Gary Bettman recently stated that the league will wait for the conclusion of the criminal case before making any comments. Meanwhile, London police continue to urge anyone with more information about the incident or who was present at Jack’s Pub or the Delta London Armories hotel on the evening of June 2018 to come forward.