Retired Lt. Gen. Trevor Cadieu faces two counts of sexual assault in connection with an alleged incident at Canada’s Royal Military College in Kingston, Ontario in 1994 while on probation, the Canadian Marshal’s Office said in a statement. The case will now be handed over to civil prosecutors, according to recent recommendations to help clear up a toxic culture within the Canadian military. Cadieu was appointed head of the Canadian military last September, but his appointment was derailed by a sexual assault investigation. According to Canadian media, he is accused of raping a college student. He had previously denied any wrongdoing. He retired in April. The Ottawa citizen said Cadieu said in an email from Ukraine that he had been informed of the allegations and that he was “making arrangements to return to Canada from Ukraine.” Louise Arbor, a former International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor and retired Supreme Court justice, criticized the military’s handling of sexual harassment cases in a report last month. The review came after another task force in 2015 found that the military had “an environment hostile to women; and favors more serious incidents of sexual harassment and assault”. In April 2021, the military reported to the House of Commons 581 sexual assaults and 221 incidents of sexual harassment had occurred since 2015.
