The victim of Nicolas Daigle and Massimo Siciliano, these former Victoriaville Tigres players guilty of sexual assault, testified to the many consequences of their actions on Monday, while sending a message of hope to victims of criminal acts.
“[Lors des faits], I was 17, I was vulnerable, the ideal sardine for their fish net. I fell into a trap thinking for a long time that it was up to me not to find myself there, to feel guilty,” the young woman forcefully asserted, in response to observations on the pain of ex-hockey players.
“Now, thanks to justice, I am convinced more than ever that what I experienced should never have happened, that it is not my fault,” she added.
She explained to judge Thomas Jacques that she was no longer the same after the events. Her school career suffered, she experienced discomfort in her sex life or at the simple sight of an ice rink and she had to live with “a constant state of anxiety about the future and anguish about the past”.
A message
Last October, Daigle and Siciliano, by pleading guilty to one count of sexual assault, abandoned their trial at the last minute. Daigle also admitted to producing and distributing a recording.
“At that moment, I felt that a second time these people had exercised control over me,” lamented the young woman, whose identity is protected.
Even if the denunciation process is difficult, it is worth it, she insisted, for the attention of victims who could recognize themselves in her story. “We can only be a winner,” she believes.
Remember that the assault took place in a hotel room on the night of June 6, 2021, on the sidelines of the celebrations surrounding the victory of the Victoriaville Tigres in the final of the QMJHL President’s Cup.
Daigle “extremely sorry”
Then called to the witness stand by his lawyer, Nicolas Daigle repeatedly expressed his “regrets” and his “shame”, in addition to saying he was “extremely sorry” and taking “full responsibility for [ses] actions” in a letter of apology addressed to the victim.
Emotional at times, the 21-year-old athlete admitted that this affair probably destroyed his “dream” of a career in professional hockey.
In 2021, he was approached by three NHL teams and was invited to training camp, but all doors closed after the charges were filed, he said.
“I have a lot of difficulty facing the public given the shame that I feel,” said Daigle, who also said he was unhappy for the collateral impacts on his family.
He claimed to have read two books on consent on his own initiative and undertook psychological follow-up, while saying he was open to the idea of doing community work and compensating the victim.
A prison sentence could cast a shadow over his future plans, as he wishes to undertake a bachelor’s degree in finance in Montreal in the fall.
Four days were set aside for sentencing observations. On Tuesday, his co-accused Massimo Siciliano will also have the opportunity to speak. The two ex-hockey players also intend to present expert evidence.