Advertisement

Former principal at Ryerson Elementary School in Hamilton pleads guilty to assault charges

Ryerson Elementary School on Robinson Street in Hamilton, Ont. A former HWDSB principal has been charged in connection with the assaults of four female students from the facility between 2014 and 2018. Don Mitchell / Global News

The former principal of a central Hamilton middle school has pleaded guilty to assaulting four former female students between 2014 and 2018.

Damir Ivankovic of Stoney Creek pleaded guilty in a virtual court on Tuesday to four assault charges during a tenure at Ryerson Elementary School on Robinson Street.

The charges are the lesser of three sex assault offences he was originally facing.

During the Tuesday session, three victim impact statements were read virtually by a pair of female victims, now in high school, and another read by the Crown.

Ivankovic was brought on by the Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board in 2003 and has also held jobs at Rosedale Elementary School and Viscount Montgomery Elementary School.

Story continues below advertisement

He was assigned to home duties by the school board in early January 2019, according to Hamilton Police.

Ivankovic’s lawyer has denied his client’s actions had any sexual intent.

A justice is expected to allow arguments on whether the “sexual integrity” of the victims may have been compromised when sentencing is heard on July 2.

The accused is likely facing a suspended sentence and three years probation, a punishment Crown and counsel have agreed to.

Ivankovic is also expected to submit a blood sample to the national DNA registry.

Sponsored content

AdChoices