Charges have been stayed against two men accused of abducting a teenage girl at random and abusing her last September.
Court records show the Crown stayed charges against Cory Lee Whalen, 40, and Shawn Ryan Leslie, 39, last month.
Winnipeg police said the teen had been walking on Portage Avenue near Sturgeon Road late on Sept. 24, 2023, when she was forced into a vehicle at knifepoint. Police said she was taken to an apartment in the city centre, where she was drugged, then sexually and physically assaulted over several hours, before she managed to escape.
FACEBOOK Cory Lee Whalen, 40, has been charged with three counts of sexual assault with a weapon, sexual assault, assault with a weapon, kidnapping, administering a noxious thing, forcible confinement and failing to comply with a probation order, among other offences. 2023
Whalen was apprehended a few days later and charged with three counts of sexual assault with a weapon, sexual assault, assault with a weapon, kidnapping, administering a noxious thing, forcible confinement and failing to comply with a probation order.
In February, investigators charged Leslie with sexual assault based on forensic evidence.
No justice officials have provided an explanation about why the Crown decided to stay the charges, despite requests from the Free Press.
Crown prosecutor Katie Dojack asked provincial court Judge Michael Clark for the stays of proceedings on all charges against Whalen at a brief hearing on April 23.
“The Crown has a continuing obligation to assess the reasonable likelihood of conviction and public interest in proceeding with respect to the charges that are laid,” said Dojack at the hearing.
“After the arrest of Mr. Whalen, the investigation continued while the Crown continued to assess the evidence provided in this case… The Crown has now determined that there was no reasonable likelihood of conviction and is therefore entering a stay of proceeding on all charges on the docket.”
The sex assault charge laid against Leslie was stayed on April 19, records show. The stay was entered on an office docket, meaning no explanation was given on the public record.
A provincial government spokesman, speaking on behalf of the Crown’s office, would not provide a further explanation this week.
Whalen’s lawyer, Barry Sinder, did not return calls.
The Winnipeg Police Service didn’t comment about the status of the case.
erik.pindera@freepress.mb.ca
Erik Pindera
Reporter
Erik Pindera reports for the city desk, with a particular focus on crime and justice.
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