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Trial underway for man accused of sexually assaulting 14-year-old

Phillip Lionel Levac has pleaded not guilty to sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl in April 2018.

The girl's name is protected by a publication ban, but she is expected to testify at the trial, which is underway at Regina's Court of Queen's Bench.

Levac, 32, pleaded not guilty to two charges of sexual assault and two of sexual interference.

Crown prosecutor Kelly Kaip said Monday she expects the court to hear that the alleged victim went to Levac's home on April 12 and 15, 2018 — and on "both days Mr. Levac had sex with her."

Defence lawyer Andrew Hitchcock issued a brief opening Monday to say that Justice Graeme Mitchell's decision must be based solely on the evidence presented at trial, rather than Levac's criminal history.

Gym bystanders flagged police

This is not he first time Levac has appeared before the courts.

In fact, Levac was bound by court conditions during the time of the alleged incidents.

In November 2017, police issued a public safety advisory that said he was a "high risk to re-offend sexually and/or violently" and would be living in North Central.

Two separate bystanders recognized Levac while at the Fieldhouse and Lawson Aquatic Centre and grew suspicious.

One woman reportedly told police she saw Levac working out with a girl who appeared to be in her early 20s. A man told police he saw Levac with a girl who appeared to be between the ages of 13 and 15. He said their behaviour was flirtatious and he took a photo.

Kaip said police found and interviewed the girl, who spoke about how she met Levac.

"He had approached her at the gym for the very first time and asked for her number," Kaip said, adding the girl advised him she was 14 in a text message.

He allegedly told her he was 28.

Submitted by the Regina Police Service
Submitted by the Regina Police Service

The Crown alleged the first sexual assault happened when Levac invited the girl over to his place and the second when they took a cab from the gym.

Kaip said that during the first interview, the police officer reportedly left the room while interviewing the girl and when she returned, she found the girl "curled up in her mother's lap with her face buried in her neck."

She was interviewed twice more, and also underwent a sexual assault examination kit.

Kaip expects the court will hear how police found Levac's and the girl's DNA on his bedding. She said police also found the packaging for an iPhone 6 in Levac's bedroom that appeared to correspond with an iPhone 6 found in his mother's underwear drawer. However, police have not been able to crack the phone's pass code yet, so it's not clear if anything is on it.

The girl reportedly said the two talked on Snapchat and text, but Kaip also said the girl later deleted him from her phone and blocked his number.