The captain and assistant captain of the University of Ottawa (U of O) hockey team were charged with sexual assault Aug. 22 following an incident in Thunder Bay this past February.
David Foucher, the 25-year-old captain, and Guillaume Donovan, the 24-year-old assistant captain have each been charged with one count of sexual assault. The victim is a 21-year-old woman, according to a statement released by Thunder Bay police. The alleged assault occurred while the pair were players on the University of Ottawa hockey team.
The two men were charged in Ottawa, and are set to appear in court on Sept. 30 in Thunder Bay.
“The Ottawa team was in Thunder Bay the weekend of January 31, 2014 to play against Lakehead University in a scheduled O.U.A. division game,” according to the statement.
Charges were laid with the help of Ottawa police and the RCMP Thunder Bay division, according to the release.
The men’s hockey team was suspended following the incident in February, according to a statement from the university.
The assault occurred on Feb. 2, at a hotel on West Arthur Street, according to the release from the Thunder Bay police. Authorities became aware of the incident on Feb. 24. Charges are laid following what Thunder Bay police describe as an “extensive” investigation, involving a trip to Ottawa to interview members of the hockey team in March.
The U of O will continue to co-operate with authorities, according to a statement by the university.
The decision to suspend the men’s hockey team for the 2014-15 season remains in effect, according to the statement.
“The University suspended the program, not individual players, as this is standard practice with university and college sports teams in these kinds of circumstances,” the statement reads.
The statement said U of O is “rebuilding” the men’s hockey team.
“We are hiring a new coach and putting in place improved policies, including new behavior guidelines for student-athletes,” the statement reads.
