WARNING: This article may affect those who have experienced sexual violence or know someone affected by it.
The young man charged with a brutal assault on an eight-year-old girl in the small rural village of Quadeville, eastern Ontario, last year entered a guilty plea for one count of aggravated sexual assault on Friday.
In July 2025, he was arrested by Ontario Provincial Police and faced charges including attempted murder and sexual assault using a weapon. At that time, he was just 17 years old.
This followed weeks after the girl was discovered with life-threatening injuries in a heavily wooded area, which created fear and anxiety within the community.
As per an agreed statement of facts presented in court in Pembroke on Friday, the teen lured the girl with candy, assaulted her sexually, inflicted severe wounds to her throat, stabbed her multiple times in her abdomen, and left her alone in the woods.
The attack on June 23, 2025, rendered her unable to speak for several weeks. She spent 49 days hospitalized.
“Much to everyone’s surprise, she has now recovered sufficiently that she is able to speak,” according to the agreed statement of facts.
Police were informed two and a half hours after the girl went missing.
Many residents from the close-knit community joined efforts to search for her – including the accused teen himself as noted in the agreed statement of facts. A search dog eventually located her conscious but exhibiting “a decreased level of awareness.”
She was transported to CHEO in Ottawa where due to her injuries and other indications, police “and others” initially speculated whether she’d been attacked by an animal. However, after consulting wildlife experts and analyzing animal DNA samples, that theory was dismissed.
On June 26, 2025, the teen provided a statement to law enforcement and was charged later on.
He remains detained while undergoing a sexual behavior assessment. There’s currently no date set for his sentencing.
Before his plea on Friday, there was a trial scheduled for January regarding his initial charges.
If you’re in immediate danger or fear for your safety or that of others around you, please call 911. For support in your area, you can look for crisis lines and local services via the Ending Sexual Violence Association of Canada database.
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