N.S. RCMP will not charge two of four arrested in alleged hockey hazing sex assault

By Canadian Press on February 27, 2026.

HALIFAX — Nova Scotia RCMP confirmed Friday they will not be moving ahead with charges against two of four teenage hockey players who were facing sexual assault charges after police investigated a complaint about a hazing ritual last fall.

The Mounties’ announcement comes less than a week after the provincial judiciary released court documents showing the other two accused, both 15 years old, had been formally charged. The police force says its investigation is continuing, but did not explain why there would be no charges against the other boys arrested earlier this month.

As for the 15-year-olds, both have been charged with two counts of sexual assault and one count of sexual assault with a weapon, which police have described as a mini hockey stick. The charges stem from alleged attacks on three victims on Oct. 3, somewhere in Colchester County, the municipality north of the Halifax region.

As well, one of the 15-year-olds has been charged with assault with a weapon — described as urine — following an alleged attack on one of the three victims between Oct. 1, 2025, and Dec. 30, 2025, in the Truro, N.S., area.

None of the allegations has been tested in court. The identities of the accused and the victims are protected from publication under the Youth Criminal Justice Act.

Police have confirmed those involved are members of a boys hockey team based in the area around Truro, which is in Colchester County.

RCMP Staff Sgt. Marc Rose issued a statement saying investigators believe there may be victims who have yet to come forward. “We want anyone who’s been a victim of assault under the guise of team initiation or bonding to know they’ll be heard and supported,” Rose said.

“Our investigators use a trauma-informed approach, and you can speak with police at any time without needing to immediately decide whether to participate in the full investigative or court process.”

Both 15-year-olds are scheduled to appear in provincial youth court in Truro on April 14. Meanwhile, they have been ordered by the court not to contact three people, and both are prohibited from entering a public dressing room unless they are with an adult.

On Feb. 5, the organization that governs hockey in the province said it first learned about an allegation involving a minor on Jan. 30. That’s when police say a youth reported being assaulted during a private team gathering in October.

Hockey Nova Scotia has said it immediately referred the matter to the RCMP. As well, the hockey organization confirmed that a youth team in the Truro area had been suspended.

The Mounties have said they collected statements from multiple witnesses, which led to new allegations indicating other offences had occurred at different locations.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 27, 2026.

Michael MacDonald, The Canadian Press