Man found guilty of multiple assaults, sexual assault on partner in Steinbach

A man has been found guilty of hitting his partner multiple times over the course of two years and sexual assault while she was sleeping.

The victim is claiming the assaults took place between Jan. 1, 2021, and Dec. 31, 2022. The accused was formally charged on June 27, 2025.

The Carillon can’t identify the victim or the accused due to a publication ban.

Provincial court Judge David Ireland delivered his decision in Steinbach. He found the victim to be a credible witness. Ireland found the accused guilty of four out of the five assault charges, the first being hit with the broom, the slap across the face, choking and slapping the victim across the stomach, and a push over the couch.

He was also found guilty of one of two sexual assault charges.

The victim was between 18 or 20 years old when she met the accused in a rooming house in Steinbach in October 2020 and the two began dating shortly after they met. In June 2021, the two moved in together and in December 2021 they got engaged. In December 2022 they split up. On January 2023, the victim notified police about the abuse she suffered at the hands of the accused.

The victim told police that her relationship with the accused was good in the beginning but “deteriorate significantly after April 2021, when the victim had to take out a car loan because her car had broken down. This added to her expenses, and the accused was upset because it was not enough money to buy the amount of marijuana he wanted,” Ireland said.

During the course of their relationship the accused hit the victim five times and multiple times sexually assaulted her.

The first assault happened in June 2021 when the two were packing for a move and the accused hit the victim with a broom handle. The second time he hit her was when she had her licence suspended and wasn’t able to drive the couple. The accused hit the victim across the face, knocked the phone out of her hand and smashed it against the wall. Following the assault the victim fled to hide in the bathroom until the accused left.

The third assault took place in June 2022, when the accused became angry when the victim had fallen behind on doing the laundry. He pushed her against the wall and choked her, leaving bruising. After a second choking incident he slapped her stomach leaving a bruise. This time the victim took photos of her injuries.

The fourth assault occurred in August 2022, when the accused pushed the victim hard over their couch causing her to hit a bike that was sitting behind the couch leading to her leg getting scraped. The victim also took pictures of her injuries of this incident.

Between January and December of 2022, the victim testified to multiple incidents of sexual violence. These included times where the accused would get on top of her while she slept and insert his penis into her vagina. She testified that she would awake to him being on top of her. Sometimes he would insert his penis into her anus while she slept. He would also try to insert anal plugs into her anus while she slept.

The victim also testified that the accused would often roll her onto her side while she slept and insert his penis into her mouth, making her choke. Throughout 2022, the victim would ask the accused multiple times to stop these actions and they would stop for a few days and then recommence.

Ireland cited the issue of consent when delivering his ruling. He said a person who is unconscious cannot give consent while there is a sexual act being performed on their body. Therefore, the accused is guilty of sexual assault while the victim was asleep.

“I believe the complainant came to court to tell the truth. She was a credible witness who, though undoubtedly confused at some points in her testimony, left the impression of a truthful witness doing her best to recall events of several years ago,” said Ireland.

The defence attacked the victim’s credibility, arguing she was unreliable because she reported the assaults to police in January 2023, a few months after the two broke up, even though it was the victim who left the relationship.

“Defence counsel was essentially asking me to infer that (the victim) was upset with the breakup and vengeful,” said Ireland, noting there was no evidence that that was the case.

“To make the finding, I would have to rely on outdated stereotypes of scorned women exacting revenge on their ex-partners. These stereotypes have rightly been eradicated from the law. There is no evidence of malice or fabrication before me.”

Ireland reserved his sentence until a pre-sentencing and Gladue report could be made regarding the accused.