Major General Dany Fortin, who led the country’s vaccination campaign logistics until his abrupt replacement in May 2021, will plead not guilty to the sexual misconduct charge that led to his downfall.
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Mr. Fortin’s lawyer filed the plea before the Court of Quebec at the Gatineau courthouse on Monday morning.
The next session is scheduled for Friday, where the date for the start of the trial will probably be set.
Mr. Fortin was criminally charged for an allegation of sexual misconduct dating back to 1988, when he was a student at the Royal Military College in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu. He was 19 years old.
Five days after being ousted by the government from its role at the head of the distribution of vaccines last May, Ottawa had transmitted the file to the Director of Criminal and Penal Prosecutions of Quebec (DPCP).
In addition to his criminal defence, the Major General is challenging the decision of the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) in court.
Dany Fortin and his lawyers argue that the federal agency’s hasty decision was motivated by political interests, in a context where the Canadian Armed Forces and the Department of Defense were plunged into a crisis related to the management of allegations of misconduct. sexual.