Simon Houle pleaded guilty Wednesday morning to a breach of probation at the Saint-Jérôme courthouse.
The engineer became known for another criminal case in which he pleaded guilty to charges of sexual assault and voyeurism. It was the sentence he received that had been criticized, considered far too lenient by many. Judge Matthieu Poliquin of the Court of Quebec had granted him a conditional discharge — which means that he should not have a criminal record — and a three-year probation, accompanied by a list of conditions to be respect. One of them ordered him not to disturb public order and to have good conduct.
But just days after receiving his absolution, the man went on a trip to Cuba. A Quebecer reproached him for having grabbed her buttocks after an evening at the hotel complex where they were both. She filed a complaint with the police upon her return to Quebec.
But the Director of Criminal and Penal Prosecutions (DPCP) could not charge him with sexual assault or another crime for acts that occurred in another country.
“We do not have jurisdiction to lay charges,” explained the Crown prosecutor, Ms.e Caroline Lafleur, in court Wednesday morning.
But she could accuse him of not having respected this condition of his probation which required him to keep the peace and have a good behavior. What she did.
Wednesday morning, from the detention center where he is currently, Simon Houle therefore pleaded guilty for this breach of probation.
His attorney and the Crown prosecutor made a joint sentencing suggestion of 18 months probation and 75 hours of community service. The judge endorsed it.
The man is currently detained in Roberval, because in his initial case of sexual assault and voyeurism, the Court of Appeal canceled the absolution he had obtained, replacing it with a prison sentence of 12 months.
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