‘We had no knowledge of pending charges’: Calgary Flames issue statement after Dillon Dube charged with sexual assault

Hours after news broke that Calgary Flames forward Dillon Dube was one of the players asked by police in London, Ont., to surrender in a sexual assault investigation, the club has said they had no prior knowledge of pending charges.

News broke last week that London Police had asked five players from the 2018 Canadian World Junior team to surrender to police and face sexual assault charges in relation to an alleged sexual assault that occurred in June 2018.

Earlier Tuesday, TSN’s Rick Westhead, citing sources, named Dube, as well as Philadelphia Flyers goaltender Carter Hart, as well as New Jersey Devils forward and defencemen Michael McLeod and Cal Foote, as the remaining players police were waiting for. On Sunday, Alex Formenton, who also played on that World Junior team, surrendered to police. Dube, now 25, was the captain of that team.

Tuesday afternoon, Louis P. Strezos and Kaleigh Davidson, Dube’s lawyers, issued a statement saying Dube was charged with sexual assault and that “he will plead not guilty and maintains his innocence.”

And on Tuesday evening, the Flames said in a statement they “have now become aware of the charge of sexual assault that has been laid against Dillon Dube” and that they “take this matter very seriously.”

Noting that since the matter is “now pending legal proceedings,” they had “no further comment at this time.”

Dube was announced on Jan. 21 through the club that he was taking a leave of absence to tend to his mental health.

“Dillon is under the care of health professionals, and we request that Dillon’s privacy is respected during this period,” the Flames said at the time.

ESPN’s Emily Kaplan reported Tuesday afternoon that she “heard that some of the players were directed by their lawyers not to tell their teams any details about potential charges,” and that while she was unsure if this is what happened in the case of Dube and the Flames, it was “something to keep in mind.”

According to Westhead, in a civil lawsuit, the complainant — referred to as E.M. in court documents, met some of the players at a downtown bar following the event. She alleged in the civil lawsuit, Westhead stated, that she left the bar with one man and had consensual sex with him but the man invited other players to the room, Westhead added, without E.M.’s consent to have sex with her, she alleged.

London Police initially investigated the allegations in 2019 without laying charges because the lead detective “didn’t believe there was enough evidence,” Westhead wrote.

In May 2022, TSN reported Hockey Canada settled a $3.55-million lawsuit brought by E.M. against the organization, the Canadian Hockey League, and eight unnamed players in connection to the alleged assault, Westhead added.