The five hockey players who were accused of sexually assaulting a woman in a London hotel room in 2018 have been found not guilty.
Alex Formenton, Carter Hart, Cal Foote, Michael McLeod, and Dillon Dubé had all pleaded not guilty to the charges against them, which stemmed from accusations that they took part in the sexual assault of the woman, known in court as "E.M.", in June of 2018 on a night in which they were in London for a gala to celebrate their victory at the 2018 World Junior Hockey Championship.
The original investigation into the sexual assault conducted by London police was closed without charges in 2019. However, it was reopened again in the spring of 2022 when news that Hockey Canada had settled a $3.5 million lawsuit with E.M. became public.
During her testimony at trial, E.M. maintained that she had gone to the hotel room and had consensual sex with McLeod, but did not consent to sexual contact with any of the other accused. The defence, however, argued that she did consent, and was in fact an active participant.
Before announcing her verdict, Ontario Superior Court Justice Maria Carroccia told the court she did not find the evidence of E.M. to be "either credible or reliable."
After the verdicts for all five were read, Justice Carroccia told them they were free to go.
The Crown faces a deadline of 30 days to file a notice of appeal.
**with files from Craig Needles
