A former Halifax taxi driver who was sentenced to two years in prison in Nova Scotia for sexually assaulting a woman is running into Iraq, according to the Crown.
After being allowed to get out of jail pending an appeal, Bassam Al-Rawi reportedly failed the person who hosted him, and is now subject to a warrant of arrest.
How he boarded a plane to leave Canada is a mystery, as he has to give his passport to the court.
Released
In 2020, Bassam Al-Rawi was convicted of a sexual assault committed on Bedford, a Halifax area, in 2012, and was sentenced to two years in prison. This judgment was upheld on appeal.
He only served a few months of his sentence. In February 2022, the judge david farrar of the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal agreed to temporarily release Bassam Al-Rawi, despite objections from the Crown, while his lawyer tries to take his case to the Supreme Court of Canada.
The judge, however, banned Bassam Al-Rawi from leaving Canada, saying public confidence in the justice system would be damaged if he was allowed to leave the country.
Al-Rawi will live in Kanata, a suburb of Ottawa, with someone who provided bail for him. This individual, Fari Faisal Jeshami, had to post a $ 50,000 bond to ensure compliance with this condition, and Al-Rawi agreed to pay $ 25,000.
Al-Rawi was also asked to respect the curfew from 11 pm to 6 am, and surrender his passport to the court.
Two cases of sexual assault, several trials
An Iraqi native who came to Canada as a refugee, Bassam Al-Rawi is a Canadian citizen.
In another case, he was twice acquitted of sexually assaulting a woman found unconscious in his taxi in 2015. His first acquittal sparked protests, after the judge Gregory Lenehan asserted that a person was in a state of intoxication may consent in intercourse.
After finding himself in the spiral of justice, Al-Rawi left Nova Scotia and settled with his family in Germany, gaining permanent residence there. He still lives in Germany, but returned to Canada for his trials.
He is leaving Canada
After Bassam Al-Rawi disappeared two weeks ago, the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal held an emergency hearing on May 25.
Fari Faisal Jeshami, sponsor of Al-Rawi in Ontario, said the latter wrote him an email on May 13, in which he informed him that he had decided to serve the remainder of his sentence in a federal prison in spring hillNova Scotia.
Attached to the email is a photo of a boarding pass from an Air Canada flight to Halifax. There is no evidence that Bassam Al-Rawi was on this flight.
Ian Hutchisonthe lawyer of the former taxi driver, contacted the Crown last week and confirmed that his client was not in spring hillor at the Central Nova Correctional Institution.
Last Wednesday, Judge Carole palo noted at the Court of Appeal hearing that Bassam Al-Rawi obtained a one-way ticket on a flight from Turkish Airlines to Istanbul, Turkey. He is now in Baghdad, the capital of Iraq.
It is not known how he rode without his passport.
The Crown prosecutor claimed that Bassam Al-Rawi had used presumed names in the past.
Before the Court of Appeal, Fari Faisal Jeshami, Al-Rawi’s respondent, expressed remorse on Wednesday. I hate myselfhe said, adding that he did not approve of his friend’s behavior.
The jury palo indicated that Mr. Jeshami had not failed in his court responsibilities, and released him from any further obligations.
The judge also allowed the lawyer Ian Hutchison to withdraw from the case. The Supreme Court of Canada has not yet decided whether or not to hear Bassam Al-Rawi’s appeal; if he accepts, he no longer has a lawyer.
The long legal legend of Bassam Al-Rawi
15 December 2012: At his home in Bedford, Bassam Al-Rawi sexually assaulted a woman he was riding in his taxi in Halifax. This woman filed a complaint, but learned in March 2013 that the police would not file a case.
22 may 2015: A police officer discovered an unconscious woman in Bassam Al-Rawi’s taxi in Halifax. He will be charged with sexual assault.
1st march 2017: Bassam Al-Rawi was acquitted after the first trial for an alleged sexual assault in 2015. The judge Gregory Lenehan then wrote in his judgment: Obviously a drunk can give consent in intercourse.
7 march 2017: A minister and citizens criticized the statements made by the judge Lenehan at the judgment of Al-Rawi provoked demonstrations.
31 January 2018: The Nova Scotia Court of Appeal has ordered a new trial for Bassam Al-Rawi, which the judge found Lenehan erred in law.
28 may 2018 : Bassam Al-Rawi has been accused of a sexual assault in the sector Bedfordin Halifax, in 2012.
4 september 2019: For the second time, Bassam Al-Rawi was acquitted at the conclusion of the trial related to the allegations in 2015.
28 August 2020: Bassam Al-Rawi was convicted of sexual assault in Bedford in 2012.
17 December 2020: Bassam Al-Rawi was sentenced to two years in prison for 2012 sexual assault.
21 December 2021 : The Nova Scotia Court of Appeal dismissed Al-Rawi’s appeal and upheld his judgment.
15 February 2022 : His lawyer who applied for leave to appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada, Bassam Al-Rawi had a condition released by the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal.
13 may 2022 : Bassam Al-Rawi violated his conditions of release and disappeared.
25 may 2022 : At an emergency hearing in the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal, the judge indicated that Bassam Al-Rawi had left Canada and may have been in Iraq.
With information from Blair Rhodes, CBC
Source: Radio-Canada
