An unlicensed massage therapist has been found not guilty of four counts of sex assault in Steinbach provincial court.
Bernhard Unger, 53, was charged last October with five counts of sexual assault on four women between January 2015 and September 2022. One charge was later stayed.
Provincial court Judge Michael Clark acquitted Unger on June 21 because he said he wasn’t able to conclude beyond a reasonable doubt that Unger had sexually assaulted the women.
He said he couldn’t find that there was a sexual purpose in the way Unger massaged them.
He said the women appeared sincere but that while their stories had similarities, there were some inconsistencies.
The women alleged Unger rubbed or dabbed his penis on their hands or arms during massages.
“The phrase ‘beyond a reasonable doubt’ is very important to our criminal justice system. It is said that reasonable doubt is not imaginary, far-fetched or frivolous doubt. It is not a doubt based on sympathy or prejudice against anyone involved in this trial.
“It is a doubt based on reason and common sense, and it is doubt that logically arises from the evidence or the absence or lack of evidence,” Clark said.
Massage is a physical act and inadvertent touching is possible, the judge said.
“The fact that it’s four women with similar stories could lead to the conclusion that the touching was for a sexual purpose, but in my mind it’s just as likely that it could have happened with a technique that Mr. Unger was using caused the inferred touching.”
— Steinbach Carillon