Saanich police have arrested a man in Saskatoon accused in a sexual assault at the home of two young University of Victoria students in January.
The women reported they were sexually assaulted on Jan. 27 after a man knocked on a door at their ground floor apartment on Church Avenue.
Afterwards the suspect walked the women to a nearby bank and forced them to withdraw cash to give to him.
He then ran away, and the women reported the assault and robbery to a nearby coffee shop. Police said both were badly traumatized by the incident and suffered physical injuries.
A number of tips poured in after police released surveillance footage of the suspect to the public.
Investigators identified him as 43-year-old David Hope, a Saskatoon resident.
Saanich officers travelled to Saskatoon on April 5 and took Hope into custody with the help of the Saskatoon Police Service.
Hope is now charged with one count of break and enter, one count of sexual assault, two counts of robbery and two counts of forcible confinement.
“Mr. Hope has lived in various western provinces and has family ties to Vancouver Island.” said Acting Sgt. Jereme Leslie. “The investigation revealed that Mr. Hope left the province shortly after the offence occurred.”
Hope has a lengthy criminal record with charges in Saskatchewan, Alberta and in B.C. dating back to 1991.
The most recent charge was for a robbery in Burnaby in 2014 where Hope produced an imitation weapon.
He was sentenced to 20 months in prison.
He has been transported back to Victoria and was scheduled to appear in court Thursday morning, but the appearance was postponed.
Hope will remain in police custody until his next appearance on April 14.
