Aylmer athlete charged with sexual assault of a minor

Sonia Roy

 

Gaston Bédard, a 70-year-old Aylmer man, is charged with sexual assault on a minor for events that occurred in 2017. The charge, to which Bédard pleaded not guilty, was based on section 271 of the Canadian Criminal Code, which stipulates that a person found guilty of sexual assault without admitting wrongdoing is eligible to a maximum term of imprisonment of 14 years in the case of a minor victim.

Bedard, who is a non-hearing and blind athlete known to local marathons, was once an elementary school teacher, a position from which he is retired. The denunciation, signed in 2019 by Justice of the Peace Benoît Paquet, mentions a single victim. The Crown, represented by prosecutor Marie-Josée Genest, did not oppose the release of Mr. Bédard pending his sentencing hearing, which is expected to take place in October 2022, presided over by Judge Gaston Paul Langevin. Me Genest and Me Cassandra Richards, Bedard's lawyers, did not respond to requests for comment from the Bulletin.

Photo: Bulletin archives 2013. Bédard (left) has been found guilty of sexual assault on a minor but is awaiting sentencing at home in Aylmer. Photo: Bulletin Archives