Verdict in sex assault trial adjourned to new year

By Delon Shurtz - Lethbridge Herald on December 22, 2021.

LETHBRIDGE HERALDdshurtz@lethbridgeherald.com

A Lethbridge man whose sexual assault trial concluded last week, won’t learn his fate until the new year when the judge is ready to deliver his verdict.
The case against Sohil Bindra was back in Lethbridge provincial court Tuesday, but adjourned to Feb. 9 when a date may be scheduled for the judge to give his decision. In the meantime, the Crown and defence must have their written arguments submitted to the judge before the end of January.
Bindra, 35, is accused of sexually assaulting four women on separate occasions between 2018 and 2020. The accused denied the allegations, and testified last week that all the women consented to the liaisons.
During the trial, which began in November, one woman testified Bindra assaulted her in his vehicle in the Spring of 2018. Bindra is charged with sexual assault and administering a noxious substance in relation to the assault against the woman.
Another woman testified Bindra sexually assaulted her after he gave her and a friend a ride home from a bar in February of last year. He is charged with housebreaking and commit sexual assault, sexual assault, and administering a noxious substance in relation to that woman. He also faces sexual assault in relation to the woman’s friend whom Bindra kissed after he gave her a ride home.
A fourth woman told court she was too drunk to drive home to Taber following a work Christmas party in December of 2018, and was sexually assaulted after Bindra allowed her to stay the night at his westside home.
Although Bindra said she was coming onto him, she testified she did not consent and told him no.
Bindra is also scheduled to stand trial next month for similar charges against a fifth woman, but the trial is expected to be adjourned today and rescheduled later. A third trial in relation to a sixth woman is set to run in June.

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