Entertainment

Hedley’s Jacob Hoggard to face trial in April on sex-related charges

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A new trial date has been set for Jacob Hoggard, the frontman for the Canadian rock band Hedley, who is charged with sex-related offences.

Hoggard’s trial was initially set to begin this week but is now slated to start on April 12, with pre-trial motions scheduled later this month.

The singer was arrested and charged in 2018 in connection with alleged incidents involving a woman and a teenager.

Hoggard pleaded not guilty at his preliminary hearing to sexual assault causing bodily harm and sexual interference.

He has opted to be tried by a jury rather than a judge alone.

The complainants cannot be identified due to a publication ban.

Allegations suggesting the musician had inappropriate encounters with young fans surfaced in 2018, prompting a police investigation.

Toronto police have said the charges relate to three separate incidents involving a woman and a girl under the age of 16 that allegedly occurred in the Toronto area in 2016.

Hoggard issued a statement in early 2018, before his arrest, denying he engaged in non-consensual sexual behaviour, but acknowledging he had behaved in a way that “objectified women” and was “reckless and dismissive of their feelings.”

Hedley has been on an indefinite hiatus since March 2018.

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SOURCE NEWS