CALGARY — A massage therapist accused of inappropriately touching male clients during appointments has been found guilty of 11 counts of sexual assault.
Court of Queen's Bench Justice Willie deWit acquitted Dennis Baltazar on five sexual assault charges.
DeWit, who gave an overview of his nearly 100-page decision in a Calgary courtroom on Tuesday, said the main issue was credibility.
"And that issue must be determined on a charge-by-charge basis by considering the evidence of the accused, the evidence of the individual complainants, along with expert and similar fact evidence and all the evidence at trial."
The complaints stemmed from encounters that took place between October 2017 and September 2018 at two Calgary clinics. Calgary police announced the charges in the spring of 2019.
DeWit said the first two complainants came forward to the managers at one of the clinics. The others reported their experiences after learning Baltazar had been fired or that police were investigating him.
Each complainant said that Baltazar touched his genital area during a massage session.
DeWit noted that Baltazar testified during his trial that the touching did not occur or, if it did, he was unaware of it.
"In most of the counts, there is no factual basis that the complainants consented to the touching of their genitals or that the accused had a mistaken belief in consent in this case," said DeWit.
A sentencing date is to be decided at a court appearance next month.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 9, 2021.
The Canadian Press
