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Criminal - Sex Offences - Committed Abroad. R. v. A.V.
In R. v. A.V. (Ont CA, 2024) the Ontario Court of Appeal considered the CCC 7(4.1) form of sex offences committed by a citizen or permanent resident while abroad:Section 7(4.1) of the Criminal Code is not overbroad
[5] The appellant is a Canadian citizen, as is the complainant. The offence he was convicted of took place in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. The appellant lived in Canada for a number of years, but went to Dubai to work in May 2016. His wife and children, including the complainant, remained in Canada. The offence occurred when the complainant and her siblings were visiting the appellant in Dubai, in the summer of 2016. It is not necessary to summarize the details of the allegations, other than that it was alleged that the appellant touched his daughter sexually, with his mouth and hands.
[6] To prosecute the offence in Canada, the Crown relied on the jurisdiction created by s. 7(4.1) of the Criminal Code. Section 7(4.1) provides that certain enumerated sexual offences against children committed abroad are deemed to be committed in Canada, if the person who commits the offence is a Canadian citizen or permanent resident within the meaning of s. 2(1) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, S.C. 2001, c. 27. Before the charge was laid against the appellant, consent of the provincial Attorney General was obtained, as required by s. 7(4.3) of the Criminal Code. No issue as to the court’s jurisdiction was initially raised by the appellant at trial.
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