Jian Ghomeshi has been arrested. The CBC – his former employer – reports:
Former CBC Radio host Jian Ghomeshi was granted bail today during a court appearance in Toronto to face four sexual assault charges, among the five he faces.
Ghomeshi’s bail was set at $100,000. He must live with his mother and stay in Canada.
The charges come several weeks after he was fired by CBC.
Ghomeshi, 47, surrendered to police on Wednesday morning and was formally charged under the Criminal Code with four counts of sexual assault and one of overcome resistance – choking.
I hope Julien Blanc is paying close attention.
Toronto police Chief Bill Blair said he could not shed any more light on the charges.
“I have no additional information other than what was released by the office this morning,” he told reporters. “All matters will be dealt with before the court.”
Blair did add that police are encouraging any other victims to come forward
“I want to offer them my assurance that they will be treated with dignity and respect,” he said.
The police department’s sex crimes unit began investigating Ghomeshi on Oct. 31 after three women filed complaints alleging he was physically violent without their consent.
Coincidentally, or not, Ghomeshi has withdrawn his lawsuit against the CBC.
News of the charges against Ghomeshi came a day after it was revealed a $55-million lawsuit he launched against the CBC last month, after he was fired in late October as host of the program radio arts, culture and entertainment program Q, was being dropped. CBC has said Ghomeshi will pay $18,000 in legal costs.
But Ghomeshi is fighting the dismissal through the CBC union, having filed a grievance through the Canadian Media Guild.
CBC has said it decided to terminate his employment after seeing “graphic evidence” that he had physically injured a woman.
Ghomeshi admitted in a lengthy Facebook post, published on the day he was fired, that he engaged in “rough sex,” but insisted his encounters with women were consensual.
Since his dismissal, nine women have come forward with allegations, some dating back a decade, that Ghomeshi sexually or physically assaulted them.
Nine is a substantial number.