UPDATE: Man accused of sexually assaulting 15-year-old Lethbridge girl appears in court
Police have charged a 59-year-old man in connection with the sexual assault of a Lethbridge girl in the early morning hours Monday.
In a news release, investigators called the attack “random” and said the 15-year-old girl was sexually assaulted in her bedroom. Police believe the man broke into the girl’s home, found her asleep in her bedroom and “took steps” to prevent her from making noise and waking up the other members of her family.
According to police, officers responded to a 911 call at a north Lethbridge home just after 5 a.m. that a 15-year-old girl had been sexually assaulted in her home by an unknown male.
Multiple officers responded and searched the area for the suspect who was found and arrested without incident a short time later.
They said the accused and victim are not known to one another.
Darral Gerard Courtoreille is facing several charges in connection with the attack, including sexual assault and sexual interference.
Global News has confirmed Courtoreille is a high-risk offender. In 2006, police alerted the public when he was moving to a new neighbourhood and said he had served time for sexual interference. According to police at the time, his victims were girls under the age of 14 and he was considered a significant risk to reoffend.
Darral Courtoreille was remanded in custody following his Judicial Interim Release hearing Monday night.
He is scheduled to appear in Lethbridge Provincial Court on Tuesday via CCTV.