Prominent former Canadian Broadcasting Corp radio host Jian Ghomeshi was arrested on Wednesday on sexual assault charges and ordered to live with his mother while his case is heard.
The former star CBC radio host was charged with four counts of sexual assault and one count of what they called “overcome resistance - choking,” Toronto police said in a statement.
The allegations, first reported in the media in October, rocked the Canadian public broadcaster, a vaunted Canadian institution.
Ghomeshi, 47, hosted Q, a popular CBC radio show on culture that was also heard on many public radio stations in the US. Ghomeshi first gained fame as a member of the 1990s satirical pop band Moxy Fruvous.
Ghomeshi made a brief appearance in court, where a justice of the peace granted him bail on condition he turns over his passport and lives with his mother. Bail was set at $100,000 (Dh367,314). He’s due in court again on January 9. A publication ban on details about the case has been imposed.
Marie Henein, Ghomeshi’s lawyer, said he will be pleading not guilty and the allegations will be addressed “fully” in court. Ghomeshi said nothing.
Toronto Police Chief Bill Blair declined comment earlier, saying the matter is now before the courts.
CBC fired Ghomeshi in October, saying his firing was prompted by the emergence of “graphic” evidence that he had caused physical injury to a person.
Ghomeshi defended his actions in a 1,500- word statement on Facebook then, saying he had consensual “rough sex” with women and is the victim of a disgruntled ex-girlfriend. After the Toronto Star reported several more allegations days later, Ghomeshi posted that he would confront the allegations “directly”, but wouldn’t discuss them with the media.
Police urged in late October for other women to come forward. Police began the investigation after nine victims had contacted various media sources to report incidents of assault and sexual assault involving Ghomeshi.
One of the women who contacted police was actress Lucy DeCoutere, a star of the long-running TV and film series Trailer Park Boys.
DeCoutere, who also serves as a captain in the Royal Canadian Air Force, was the first woman who made allegations against Ghomeshi to speak on the record about her experience. DeCoutere said she went on a date with him and alleges that when they returned to his home, he pressed her up against a wall, choked her and slapped her across the face several times.
Author and lawyer Reva Seth became the second woman to go public, writing in the Huffington Post that Ghomeshi put his hands around her throat and sexually assaulted her, although it was not known if she was one of the women who filed a complaint to police against Ghomeshi.
None of the allegations from any of the women have been proven. Ghomeshi’s lawyer didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
After he was fired, Ghomeshi launched a $55-million lawsuit against the CBC for breach of confidence and defamation. He dropped that lawsuit on Tuesday. A union grievance alleging dismissal without proper cause remains.
