Van attack suspect Alek Minassian to be tried by judge alone in Toronto

The man accused of a deadly van attack on a busy sidewalk in the north end of the city won’t face a jury and will be tried in Toronto, a court ruled on Wednesday.

Alek Minassian is charged with 10 counts of first-degree murder and 16 counts of attempted murder in the April 2018 attack.

“As a result of the consent of all parties to proceed without a jury, there’s no need to move the case from Toronto, and the case can proceed here, and it will proceed in Toronto in February of 2020,” said Minassian’s lawyer, Boris Bytensky.

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“The trial is going to proceed without a jury and with a judge. We have a very senior, experienced judge, and I’m sure that Mr. Minassian will receive the fairest trial possible.”

READ MORE: Van attack suspect Alek Minassian was searching for job, set to graduate college

Toronto police allege Minassian drove a van down a stretch of Yonge Street on April 23, 2018.

The trial is scheduled for February 2020.

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“I can’t talk about the defence at all,” Bytensky said.” I can certainly confirm that there won’t be a need to move the case from Toronto now, and Mr. Minassian has great confidence that he will receive a fair trial now. It’s all anybody can ask for.”

—With files from Caryn Lieberman and Gabby Rodrigues