REGINA – Saskatchewan’s top court has dismissed the Crown’s appeal of the acquittal of former Regina doctor Sylvester Ukabum.
The former gastroenterologist was acquitted of seven counts of sexual assault against five different women.
“While I find the trial judge erred in his handling of the Crown’s application to admit similar fact evidence, I am not persuaded that these errors had a material bearing on acquittal,” wrote Justice Lian Schwann in a Feb. 16 written Saskatchewan Court of Appeal decision.
When the appeal was heard in June 2023, the Crown had argued that the trial judge made three errors, which impacted the verdict. According to court documents, the three errors the Crown alleged were the trial judge’s fact-finding process was flawed, he failed to admit similar fact evidence, and had admitted and relied on expert evidence about memory formation and retention.
Justice Schwann, in concurrence with Chief Justice Robert Richards and Justice Brian Barrington-Foote, disagreed with the Crown’s arguments.
Warning: Details may be disturbing to some
Five of Dr. Ukabum’s patients had come forward in 2017 alleging he had sexually assaulted them while conducting various medical examinations or diagnostic procedures. There is a publication ban on identifying the complainants.
During the trial, four of the five patients testified that Dr. Ukabam had digitally penetrated their vaginas, and the fifth described an odd breast examination.
Dr. Ukabam had testified in his own defence and said he had little memory of the various office visits and procedures performed. He told the court that he performed rectal examinations or procedures on the complainants and that those examinations involved contact around the perineal area, which may have led the women to have misinterpreted the sensations as being vaginal penetration. He denied having inserted his fingers into their vaginas or intentionally touching the breasts of one woman in a sexual manner. He maintained that he did nothing inappropriate and that at all times had the consent of the patients to perform the procedures and examinations.
Ukabam retired from practicing medicine.
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