Teen charged in sex assaults

TORONTO—A 15-year-old boy has been arrested and charged in connection with a string of sex assaults in a west-end Toronto neighbourhood, police said today.
Staff Insp. Mary Lee Metcalfe said the youth, who cannot be identified, was arrested late Saturday night and charged with 14 counts of sexual assault and two counts of criminal harassment.

Since Aug. 16, police have received 16 reports from women who say they were sexually assaulted in the downtown neighbourhood.
The most recent incident occurred on Oct. 20, just prior to the arrest, Metcalfe said.
In many of the cases, police said the women were approached from behind and sexually assaulted by a male, who then fled.
Toronto police Chief Bill Blair said he hopes the arrest brings a sense of security back to the community.
“Fear, particularly among women, and their sense of safety in their own neighbourhood was taken from them as a result of these crimes,” he remarked.
Blair added the arrest could not have been made without the dedication of young female police officers who went undercover.
“We had women in our organization who put themselves in harm’s way, who went out in that community and put themselves at risk, knowing that if they were successful in their mission, they could also be the victim of an assault,” he noted.