A drug dealer who sexually assaulted a client sleeping in a hotel room may have pleaded “misunderstanding”, a judge still found him guilty, pointing out that no, a person who is sleeping cannot be consenting.
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“The ability to consent is a prerequisite for consent,” judge Nathalie Fafard had to remind Sidi Elfatmi Hajouji Idrissi and all those who had forgotten. There cannot be consent when the complainant is unconscious, therefore when she is asleep. »
And the consequences can be serious, since the 48-year-old accused now risks prison, in addition to being registered as a sex offender for many years.
In her case, the crime occurred during the pandemic, when the complainant had relapsed into cocaine.
The woman, who was temporarily staying in a Montreal hotel, then ordered drugs. It was the accused who was the delivery man.
Not a “misunderstanding”
However, the victim had consumed so much that at one point, she fell asleep. And Hajouji Idrissi, who was still there, took the opportunity to satisfy his base instincts, even though the woman had clearly told him that she did not want sexual relations.
“She specifies that the gesture is not done gently, the sensation is unpleasant, she is in a state of drowsiness, she does not react and goes back to sleep,” we can read in the recent judgment rendered at the courthouse in Montreal.
In the early morning, Hajouji Idrissi did it again, sexually assaulting the complainant a second time. This woke the woman, who was then able to see the rapist's “satisfied look”.
In panic, the victim confronted the accused, who remained vague in his responses. She then called the police, despite the accused's attempts to convince her that it was a “misunderstanding”.
Accused not credible
During the trial, Hajouji Idrissi tried to make people believe that the victim was in fact consenting and that they had “experienced pleasure”. His dubious testimony and failing memory, however, convinced the judge that he was not credible.
The victim, for her part, gave a “clear and precise” testimony, describing, despite her disgust, the actions committed against her.
The Crown was also able to count on the expertise of a toxicologist, who confirmed that the victim's physical condition corresponded to that of a person who had consumed a significant quantity of drugs in the preceding days.
Hajouji Idrissi, who was found guilty of sexual assault, will return to court in January for pleadings on the sentence to be imposed on him.
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