After a four-month investigation, Toronto police have charged the lead singer for Canadian pop-rock band Hedley for alleged sexual assault.
Jacob Hoggard, 34 turned himself in to police with his lawyer on Monday morning.
Toronto police released a statement saying Hoggard has been charged with two counts of sexual assault causing bodily harm and one count of sexual interference. Under the Criminal Code, the charge of sexual interference is only laid if the alleged victim is under the age of 16.
Hoggard is scheduled to appear in court Thursday. Police are concerned there may be more victims, according to the statement.
Hoggard is accused of sexually assaulting two women on separate occasions while in Toronto. One of the alleged victims is the 24-year old Ottawa woman who first came forward to the CBC News with details of her alleged rape earlier this year.
CBC is not identifying the Ottawa woman to protect her privacy and because revealing her identity could make her a target on social media.
She met Hoggard in 2016 during a WE Day youth charity concert in the capital. Their relationship began with a swipe over the social media app Tinder. The woman says that after she and Hoggard got to know each other over video texts and social media, he bought her a train ticket and they arranged to meet at the Thompson Hotel.
The Ottawa woman claimed she was demeaned, choked and forced her to have vaginal and anal sex. Through a statement issued by his lawyer, Hoggard denied the allegations and said the two had consensual sex.
This photo of Hoggard was taken during the Juno weekend celebrations in Calgary, on April 5, 2008. (Jonathan Hayward/The Canadian Press)
Hedley was enveloped by a cloud of controversy during the band’s concert tour to promote its Cageless album in February. The twitter hashtag #OutHedley2K18 dogged them at every stop of their 32-city Canadian tour as dozens of anonymous women took to social media to accuse the Vancouver area rockers of sexual misconduct.
As the chorus of complaints against Hedley grew, radio stations stopped playing their music and the band was forced to withdraw from Juno awards. The band was also fired by its management company while other musical acts refused to open for them on tour.
Following CBC’s report of the rape allegation, the group announced its members had unanimously decided to go on indefinite hiatus to work on their “personal relationships and who we are as individuals” after the tour.
Although Hedley’s Cageless shows did not sell out as they had previously, they were still well attended by thousands of fans who vowed to stand by the band. And at the final concert in Kelowna in March, Hoggard hinted at a return to music.
Before leaving the stage, he signed off, “This is good night, not goodbye.”