Spiritual leader's wife charged with sexual assault accuses police of taking cell phone without warrant
The wife of an Edmonton spiritual leader who is accused of sexual assault has a new lawyer.
Zachary Al-Khatib appeared in court on Wednesday on Leigh Ann de Ruiter's behalf, arguing for the return of de Ruiter’s cell phone.
“One of the things that happened when she was arrested was that her cell phone was seized from her,” Al-Khatib told CTV News Edmonton outside of the provincial courthouse.
He argued the phone was taken without a warrant.
“No warrant has been provided for that seizure. That warrant is a judicial authorization, it lets the public know that a judge has signed off and permitted the police to take the phone. That information has not been provided,” he said.
“The fact that she’s not even been given a legal basis for her phone being taken away and it’s in police custody right now and not being released to her is extremely concerning,” he added.
Leigh Ann de Ruiter is married to John de Ruiter, leader of the Oasis Group based in Edmonton.
He’s accused of sexually assaulting four people in separate incidents between 2017 and 2020.
Leigh Ann is charged with three counts of sexual assault, which police say are three of the same incidents as her husband.
Both are out on bail with a number of conditions.
Leigh Ann’s next court appearance is on April 12.
“We’re left to wait,” said Al-Khatib. “The crown has been given another two weeks to provide disclosure.”
In April, he hopes the Crown will provide a legal basis for the seizure of his client’s phone.
“It may be that we have to ask another judge to make the crown give that basis or provide the phone back to her.”
With files from CTV News Edmonton's Alison MacKinnon
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Cargo ship had engine maintenance in port before Baltimore bridge collapse, officials say
The cargo ship that lost power and crashed into a bridge in Baltimore underwent 'routine engine maintenance' in port beforehand, the U.S. Coast Guard said Wednesday.
A Nigerian woman reviewed some tomato puree online. Now she faces jail
A Nigerian woman who wrote an online review of a can of tomato puree is facing imprisonment after its manufacturer accused her of making a “malicious allegation” that damaged its business.
Far North police 'dispatch' polar bear stalking schoolyard
Police and local hunters in an Ontario Far North First Nation community have “dispatched” a polar that was showing abnormal behaviour and treating the area as a hunting ground.
Donald Trump assails judge and his daughter after gag order in N.Y. hush-money criminal case
Donald Trump lashed out Wednesday at the New York judge who put him under a gag order that bars him from commenting publicly about witnesses, prosecutors, court staff and jurors in his upcoming hush-money criminal trial.
Families shocked after Niagara Falls hotel cancels bookings made year in advance of solar eclipse
After having the foresight to book their Niagara Falls hotel rooms more than a year in advance, several families planning to take in the solar eclipse next month were shocked to find out their reservations had been cancelled.
B.C. rescuers face 'high likelihood' of failure to reunite orphaned orca with pod
The race to reunite an orphaned orca calf that’s stuck in a shallow lagoon with a neighbouring pod has entered its fifth day, and a marine scientist says the clock is ticking.
Video shows police interrupting auto theft in progress outside Toronto home
New video footage obtained by CP24 shows the attempted theft of a vehicle in a North York driveway earlier this month that was ultimately interrupted by police.
Majority of Canadians believe in life after death: Angus Reid survey
A new survey from the Angus Reid Institute has found that a majority of Canadians believe in some form of life after death, a proportion that has held steady for decades.
MyPillow, owned by U.S. election denier Mike Lindell, formally evicted from Minnesota warehouse
A court ordered the eviction Wednesday of MyPillow from a suburban Minneapolis warehouse that it formerly used.