A 97-year-old has been charged in a historic sexual assault case alleged to have happened over four decades ago at residential and day schools in the Far North and a Sudbury detention centre.
In late 2022, James Bay OPP was contacted by an individual about the incidents. They are alleged to have happened in the 1960s and 1970s at residential and day schools in Fort Albany and Moosonee, as well as a detention facility in Sudbury.
OPP confirmed to TimminsToday that the accused was a nun/teacher at the schools. In Moosonee, police say the school was Bishop Belleau School. In Fort Albany, located on the James Bay coast in Northern Ontario, she worked at the notorious St. Anne's Residential School, which operated from 1906 to 1976.
After an extensive investigation by the James Bay OPP Crime Unit, 97-year-old Francoise Seguin of Ottawa has been charged with three counts of gross indecency (the Criminal Code prior to 1987).
The accused is scheduled to appear in court in Moosonee on Dec. 5.
None of the charges have been tested in court and the accused is considered innocent unless proven guilty.
A 24-hour national residential school crisis line to support former students and their families is available at 1-866-925-4419.
