Several girls have alleged “inappropriate touching” by boys that happened at an athletes’ dance at the BC Summer Games on Saturday night, the organization’s CEO told Global News.
As many as 30 girls alleged that some boys were making inappropriate contact with them, BC Games Society CEO Kelly Mann said.
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“When that was discovered, as the girls came off the floor and said, hey, this behaviour was happening, we kind of shut the dance down and our volunteers intervened to make sure the girls were safe and just to kind of stop the behaviour,” he said.
Mann learned of the allegations on Sunday morning.
He said some girls came forward on Saturday and that allegations from more girls became evident the following day.
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“As the story’s breaking, there may be more girls who said, that happened to me too at these games, and of course we would want to hear from them so that we can take measures to ensure that they feel supported and comforted,” Mann said.
Mann didn’t speak to any of the girls himself, but he learned that a number of them were shaken.
“I know certainly this wasn’t something that was taken lightly by any of the girls,” he said.
Mann said the RCMP opened a file on the incident after they were contacted about it on Sunday.
“It’s incredibly upsetting to them, to the volunteers, to the organization,” Mann said of the allegations.
The RCMP are now investigating and are looking for victims and witnesses in the alleged sexual assaults. The RCMP says they became aware of the allegations the morning after the athletes’ dance.
According to a release from the Mounties, the investigation is focusing on confirming the events that took place, along with ‘identifying all victims and alleged suspect(s)’. The RCMP says it is ‘mindful’ the serious allegations likely involve people under the age of 18.
“While we have initiated an investigation into these allegations, it is imperative that anyone who may have been a victim or witnessed the incident contact police so the matter can be thoroughly investigated”, said B.C. RCMP Media Relations Officer Sgt. Annie Linteau.
Anyone who has any information about these allegations or may have been a victim, regardless of your place of residence, is asked to contact the Cowichan/Duncan RCMP at 250-748-5522.