A charge of sexual exploitation against the former manager of a girl’s minor hockey team in Saskatchewan has been stayed.
The trial for Jamie Engen had been slated to begin Tuesday, but court records show the Crown stayed the charge last week.
Engen, who was charged in October and managed the Prince Albert Northern Bears of the Saskatchewan Female U18 Hockey League, pleaded not guilty in December.
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When a charge is stayed by the courts, the Crown has up to one year to reactivate it.
Crown lawyer Kristen Hubbard could not be reached for comment on Monday, so the exact reasons for the stay of proceedings were not immediately clear.
Defence lawyer Garth Bendig says his client was relieved with the outcome.
“It was our hope all along the Crown would discontinue the prosecution. Mr. Engen participated in the investigation throughout and so the result is what we had hoped for,” Bendig said.
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Engen was let go from the Northern Bears’ organization around the time he was charged.
“The past 10 months has been a very difficult time for our hockey family. We, as an organization, will continue to provide all the appropriate measures to ensure the safety, health and well being of all our players are met as we move forward from this,” team president Laura Quesnel said in a statement.