'Bring it to light': Ex-priest from Regina in court following historic sexual assault charges
CTV
Wednesday marked the first court appearance for an 81-year-old former priest from Regina who is facing several historic sexual assault charges stemming from alleged incidents in Manitoba.
Wednesday marked the first court appearance for an 81-year-old former priest from Regina who is facing several historic sexual assault charges stemming from alleged incidents in Manitoba.
Family members of the woman – Shelley Trubiak - who reported the alleged assault to RCMP Russell Detachment spoke to CTV News.
“She's carried this for 66 years, it's impacted every moment of her life,” Trubiak’s niece, Aimee Proskie, explained.
In March 2022, Trubiak reported the alleged assault to police. She told officers she had been sexually assaulted multiple times over the course of two years while she was a parishioner at St. Elijah Romanian Orthodox Church.
Around two years later, on June 13, 81-year-old Constantin Turcoane turned himself in to police to face charges for the sexual assault that allegedly occurred when he was a priest at a church in Lennard, Manitoba, according to a Saskatchewan RCMP news release.
Investigators took statements from multiple people, conducted a search of historic church records and liaised with “church-related organizations to obtain further investigative material,” according to the RCMP.
"I don't think justice will ever be served, he's an 80 year old man at this point, but I think it's important that she has a voice and uses that voice to empower herself and empower other women,” said Proskie.
