Two teachers charged in separate sex abuse cases in Webequie First Nation
CBC
WARNING: This article may affect those who have experienced sexual violence or know someone affected by it.
A northwestern Ontario First Nation is shaken after two different teachers were charged with sexual offences against youth in the community, says a parent.
Both men were charged with sexual assault in Webequie First Nation, months apart in unrelated cases in 2024, according to Nishnawbe Aski Police Service (NAPS). Their cases will be before the courts in the coming weeks.
"Everybody was shocked, devastated," said Florence Spence who is a local parent and an Ontario Works training co-ordinator at Webequie First Nation.
Spence said she's been speaking up at community meetings because more needs to be done to protect Indigenous youth from harm.
"Nobody's advocating for them and nobody's supporting them," she said.
The community of roughly 800 has a single school. Located 540 kilometres north of Thunder Bay, it's only accessible by air or seasonal winter road.
The two male teachers working in Webequie First Nation were charged in separate, unrelated incidents, according to NAPS.
Most recently, Noah John Sisson allegedly sexually assaulted a teenage boy in September 2024, said police.
The 26-year-old teacher is charged with both sexually assaulting someone under 16 years old and inviting sexual touching from someone under 16. He's also charged with sexual interference, which the Criminal Code defines as touching the body of someone under 16 for a sexual purpose, directly or indirectly.
A now-removed biography on the school's website said Sisson worked as an elementary teacher in Webequie and had been coming to the community for over four years. The Ontario College of Teachers confirmed in an email that Sisson was not registered as an Ontario Certified Teacher (OCT).
Sisson was released on bail with the requirement that he reside at either or both of two specified addresses in Holland Landing, Ont. and Peterborough, Ont. He also has to stay in the presence of his surety at all times. His case is scheduled to be spoken to at the Thunder Bay courthouse in December. The allegations against him have not yet been tested in court.
CBC News reached out to Sisson through his lawyer, who declined to comment when reached by phone.
In February 2024, a different teacher was also arrested, NAPS said.
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