Bringing a prisoner from Winnipeg to Montreal seems as complicated as obtaining the A-38 pass in THE twelve labors of Asterix. A man guilty of sexual assault in Montreal has been waiting for his sentence for nine months, but Manitoba seems to be mocking Quebec justice.
“I can’t believe someone is being held in a provincial jail somewhere else [au Canada] and that we cannot bring him here, ”exasperated Judge Salvatore Mascia on Thursday at the Montreal courthouse.
The magistrate of the Court of Quebec had just learned that a prison in Winnipeg had not respected the “order” signed by his colleague from the Superior Court of Quebec to bring the inmate Haroun Cheikh Sidiya to Quebec.
“We start at square zero,” said Judge Mascia.
The 32-year-old man from Winnipeg was convicted last September in Montreal of sexually assaulting an intoxicated woman in the residences of the University of Quebec in Montreal (UQAM) in 2018.
Haroun Cheikh Sidiya had passed himself off as a good Samaritan in order to accompany the victim back to his room, after he had passed him in the corridor during the night. He had taken the opportunity to sexually assault the woman in the stairwell. At his trial, the man measuring more than 6 feet claimed to have felt “vulnerable” in front of this woman who was much smaller than him.
In principle, sentencing hearings should take place soon after the judgment so that the sentence can be imposed a few weeks later. However, nine months later, Haroun Cheikh Sidiya’s hearing has still not taken place. And since he defends himself alone, his presence is required at the Montreal courthouse.
But, and this is where the shoe pinches, Haroun Cheikh Sidiya has been detained for several months in Winnipeg for not having respected his conditions of release in another case of sexual assault and sexual contact with a minor.
Since then, it seems impossible to even allow him to attend the hearing by videoconference. For what ? Due to a stupid technological barrier. Indeed, Manitoba prisons use the Cisco platform, and not Microsoft Teams, as in Quebec.
“I took several steps to ensure that Mr. was by video and it was not possible. The last three times, we had Monsieur on the phone, ”explained the Crown prosecutor Me Anna Levin.
Running out of solutions
Moving this man to a Quebec prison also seems like a titanic challenge. Even an order signed by a judge of the Superior Court of Quebec does not seem to have any effect in Manitoba.
The director of court transport at the Montreal courthouse, François Lorange, explained to Judge Mascia on Thursday that the Quebec correctional services were not authorized to carry out transport outside Quebec, except in Ontario prisons.
According to Mr. Lorange, to make the transfer to Quebec, the local Manitoba police would have to transport Haroun Cheikh Sidiya to an Ontario prison, where he could pick him up. However, incarcerating him in Ontario during the transfer would require… a warrant signed by an Ontario judge.
“We’ll have to contact the prison director to ask him to take his car and [d’amener] Mr. in Ontario in a prison, ”wondered the prosecutor Me Levin, puzzled.
If the man had been detained in a penitentiary – therefore under federal jurisdiction – the process would be easier, since he could have been transferred from penitentiary to penitentiary as far as Quebec, explained François Lorange.
“I don’t know what the solution is,” said Judge Mascia.
Running out of solutions, the judge suggested that the prosecutor return to Superior Court to obtain a new arrest order. Me Levin must also try to communicate with the management of the prison of Winnipeg to clear things up.
“I’ll try to call them at the Brandon Correctional Center. Maybe they’ll swarm, ”concluded the judge, exasperated.
Meanwhile, the victim of Haroun Cheikh Sidiya has been waiting for years for the conclusion of this case which began in 2018. “All of this is really unfortunate for the victim”, recognizes Me Levin, in interview with The Press.
The case must return to the magistrate on Friday.