A police spokesperson says they encourage other potential victims of historical sexual assault in Richmond Co. to come forward.
RCMP Cpl. Jennifer Clarke says officers arrested Delmore Boudreau, 90, in early May.
The Petit-de-Grat man was released from custody; he’s scheduled to appear in Port Hawkesbury Provincial Court May 28.
Clarke tells The Hawk they reached nine victims and they think that’s it.
“There always is the possibility that there could be more so we would like them to know that even though charges have been laid in this case, they definitely always have the option to come forward to police,” she says. “If they don’t live in the Richmond Co. area, that’s no problem; they can come forward to any police agency that’s in their area.”
Clarke says the offences took place on Isle Madame between 1966 and 1986; the victims were between the ages of four and 12 at the time.
She says they can’t disclose Boudreau’s role in the community because they have to protect the identity of the victims who have come forward in the case.
“When you consider the size of Isle Madame, maybe people down there know who the victims are, however, it’s our job to protect their identity- it’s very important to us,” she says. “Coming forward as the victim of a crime is one thing; coming forward as a victim of a very personal crime like a sexual assault is entirely different.”
The 12 sexual offence charges were announced Wednesday; police say those are part of an eight-month investigation they’ve completed.