YORKTON – A former chief of Keeseekoose First Nation has been charged with a historical sexual assault against a male youth.
According to court documents obtained by SASKTODAY.ca, 70-year-old Theodore (Ted) Quewezance had an appearance scheduled in Kamsack Provinicial Court on Oct. 10. He wasn’t present in court, and instead, defence counsel Sharon Fox appeared by phone. Judge Lynn Hyntz adjourned the matter to Nov. 7 at the request of the defence.
Crown Prosecutor Cavan Raistrick is proceeding by way of indictment, the more serious offence, which generally means more prison time if convicted.
Quewezance was arrested by Kamsack RCMP on Aug. 28, 2023, and charged with four sexual assault offences against a male under the age of 16. Court documents show that the incidents were alleged to have occurred between September 1997 to 2004 on Keeseekoose First Nation.
Quewezance is a former Senate Chair of the Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations, a group based out of Saskatoon that advocates for First Nations in Saskatchewan.
According to the National Residential School Crisis Line, Quewezance is a residential school survivor and advocate for Reconciliation. Their website states: "In recognition of his four decades of work on residential schools, he was appointed by the Assembly of First Nations to ensure headway is made on the Truth and Reconciliation Calls to Action on Health. He is also the Assembly of First Nations representative in the Indigenous Health Alliance, a collaboration of more than 150 First Nations working towards Indigenous health transformation, and a current board member of several non-profits."
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