A man facing seven charges stemming from a crime spree in Richmond will go on trial in late November.
In B.C. Supreme Court on June 22, Justice Ronald Skolrood set a 10-day trial for Taymour Aghtai between Nov. 28-Dec. 9.
Aghtai, born in 1994, is charged with sexual assault, sexual assault with a weapon, assault with a weapon, extortion, unlawful confinement and possession of a firearm. The alleged incidents occurred Sept. 5, 2020. Aghtai elected for trial by judge alone.
A pretrial hearing is scheduled for Sept. 13.
Aghtai remains in custody. He appeared via videoconference at the scheduling hearing. The matter is proceeding to trial by direct indictment, rather than a preliminary hearing, to which Aghtai seemed confused.
“So is a direct indictment a big deal or something I need to know about?” Aghtai said.
The judge advised he ask his lawyer, but defence counsel Josh Oppal sent a law student in his place.
Last December, Aghtai pleaded guilty to conveying a false message with intent to alarm for a phone call he made in March 2020 to the Lynn Valley Care Centre in North Vancouver.
On the same day a patient there became Canada’s first-known death from the coronavirus, Aghtai pretended to be a public health officer warning the facility should be closed. His call led to a shift cancellation the next day.
