Canadian military member faces unprecedented prosecution for alleged sexual assault at CFB Borden
Warning: Readers may find some content in this article disturbing or triggering.
An unprecedented prosecution is underway in Barrie criminal court against an active member of the Canadian military accused of sexually assaulting a female soldier while at Canadian Forces Base Borden in 2018.
"It happened so damn quickly that, you know, you don't even have time to think," the complainant told military police in a 2018 interview.
The woman had a publication ban on her identification lifted, still, CTV News will not be naming her at this time.
The complainant says she was in a common room unwinding and headed up to her room when Oleksii Silin, whom she considered a colleague, pulled her into a broom closet, confined her and sexually assaulted her in May 2018.
"I just turned my back on him, and I just bent over, and I said, okay, let him finish, and I'm out of here. So, I just gave up," she said during the 2018 interview with military police.
She told investigators she felt helpless and feared for her safety.
"He's a lot stronger than me, so I wasn't even going to try to attempt to fight," she said.
- Download the CTV News app to get local alerts on your device
- Get the latest local updates sent to your email inbox
Silin, ranking as a private in May 2018, was interviewed by investigators from the military police, telling them his accuser told him she wanted to go to sleep, "and then I take her hand and just maybe that's why like force."
"And after that, I like kissed her and she didn't say nothing," he added.
The Judge Advocate General did not follow through with the charges and cited a lack of training by those who conducted the interviews with Silin and his accuser.
Further to efforts by the complainant, who was seeking leave to prosecute Silin privately in civilian criminal court, the Ontario Crown has indicted Silin.
She says the military justice system has failed her and countless others whose reports of sexual assault and misconduct in the military have been brushed aside.
Silin, who is awaiting trial, is an active member of the Canadian Armed Forces and ranks as a corporal. The Canadian Armed Forces confirmed to CTV News Cpl. Oleksii Silin is a vehicle technician at 2nd Battalion, Royal Canadian Regiment in the 5th Canadian Division Support Base Gagetown.
Toronto lawyer Mitchell Worsoff represents him. The accused makes his next court appearance later this month.
The allegations against him have not been tested in court.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Canadian former Olympic snowboarder wanted in Ontario double homicide: DOJ
A Canadian former Olympic snowboarder who is suspected of being the leader of a transnational drug trafficking group that operated in four countries is wanted for allegedly orchestrating the murder of an 'innocent' couple in Ontario in 2023, authorities say.
Ontario school board trustees under fire for $100K religious art purchase on Italy trip
Trustees with an Ontario school board are responding to criticism over a $45,000 trip to Italy, where they purchased more than $100,000 worth of religious statues.
A photographer snorkeled for hours to take this picture
Shane Gross, a Canadian marine conservation photojournalist, has won the title of Wildlife Photographer of the Year.
Tobacco giants would pay out $32.5 billion to provinces, smokers in proposed deal
Three tobacco giants are proposing to pay close to $25 billion to provinces and territories and more than $4 billion to some 100,000 Quebec smokers and their loved ones as part of a corporate restructuring process triggered by a long-running legal battle.
More Trudeau cabinet ministers not running for re-election, sources say shuffle expected soon
Federal cabinet ministers Filomena Tassi, Carla Qualtrough and Dan Vandal announced Thursday they will not run for re-election. Senior government sources tell CTV News at least one other, Marie-Claude Bibeau, doesn't plan to run again, setting the stage for Justin Trudeau to shuffle his cabinet in the coming weeks.
Robert Pickton's handwritten book seized after his death in hopes of uncovering new evidence
A handwritten book was seized from B.C. serial killer Robert Pickton's prison cell following his death earlier this year, raising hopes of uncovering new evidence in a series of unprosecuted murders.
Former members of One Direction say they're 'completely devastated' by Liam Payne's death
The former members of English boy band One Direction reacted publicly to the sudden death of their bandmate, Liam Payne, for the first time on Thursday, saying in a joint statement that they're 'completely devastated.'
Israel says it has killed top Hamas leader Yayha Sinwar in Gaza
Israeli forces in Gaza killed top Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, a chief architect of last year's attack on Israel that sparked the war, the military said Thursday. Troops appeared to have run across him unknowingly in a battle, only to discover afterwards that a body in the rubble was Israel's most wanted man.
Indian government employee charged in foiled murder-for-hire plot in New York City
The U.S. Justice Department announced criminal charges Thursday against an Indian government employee in connection with a foiled plot to kill a Sikh separatist leader living in New York City.