CALGARY – Disgraced former hockey coach Graham James has returned to Canada and will face new sex charges, including allegations he sexually assaulted former Calgary Flames captain Theoren Fleury, when Fleury was a teenager.
James surrendered early Wednesday morning, by prearranged mutual agreement, to Winnipeg police at Pearson International Airport in Toronto.
The officers escorted James, 58, back to Winnipeg where he was arrested on a Canada-wide warrant that had been issued earlier this month. He remains in custody.
James is believed to have been living in Mexico.
This investigation is ongoing and no further details will be released, police said.
According to court documents, James faces nine charges in connection with three complainants – one of whom is Fleury.
The charges date from the late 1970s to the early 1990s.
James, a former coach of the Moose Jaw Warriors, Swift Current Broncos and Calgary Hitmen, is charged with three counts of sexual assault, three counts of gross indecency, indecent assault, sexual touching and another charge.
In his autobiography, Playing with Fire, Fleury wrote that he was sexually assaulted repeatedly as a teenager.
On Jan. 6, Fleury filed a criminal complaint in Winnipeg against his former coach.
Fleury said he was “excited” by the news James was in custody.
“It’s just one more step closer to the end,” said Fleury, who was in Toronto Wednesday night. In January of this year, Fleury told media he had filed a complaint with the Winnipeg Police Service, which police confirmed they were pursuing.
“I think (returning is) the smartest thing he’s done in a long time,” said Fleury.
Fleury said he’s waiting to see what will happen once James appears in court.
“This has been out of my control since the day I walked into the police (station) and filed a complaint, right? I have to trust in the system and trust that everything will be taken care of, and we can all move on,” he said.
He said he wouldn’t be afraid to testify against his former coach in court.
“I feel fortunate that I have the support I have around me that’s allowed me to take this through right to the very end,” he said. “When I went into Winnipeg last January, I basically said to the world that I’m willing to follow this through for however long it takes.”
In 1997, James was convicted of sexually assaulting former NHLer Sheldon Kennedy and an unidentified junior player 350 times over 10 years. He was sentenced to 3 1/2 years.
He served 18 months in prison before quietly applying for, and receiving, a pardon in 2007 that allowed him to travel freely around the world.
Kennedy also said he is pleased to hear that his abuser is behind bars.
“When you’ve been hurt by a monster like Graham as a kid, there’s a little piece inside you all of the time – in the back of your mind -_where you don’t feel safe,” Kennedy said. “When he’s in custody, you don’t live with the fear of him getting you any more.”
Calgary Herald, with files from Winnipeg Free Press
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