WARNING: Some readers may find details in this story disturbing. Discretion is advised.
Jake Virtanen took the stand in a Vancouver courtroom on Thursday, giving his version of events on the night he has been accused of sexual assault in a hotel room in September 2017.
He started by telling the jury that being drafted by the Vancouver Canucks in 2014 was a dream come true and that thousands of people started following him on Instagram. He paused, appeared to start crying and was offered a tissue and water.
The defence then asked Virtanen about when he met the complainant, who cannot be named because of a publication ban, at the Calgary Stampede a few months before the alleged incident.
Virtanen said the complainant and “one or two” friends approached them at the tent outside a bar and said they knew they were hockey players.
“I thought she was cute. I didn’t know her at that time, but I thought she was good-looking, yes,” he told the court.
Virtanen said he did have a number of drinks throughout the evening, and that he’d wanted to just have fun with his friends and was upset about a recent break-up.
Earlier in the week, the jury was shown a video of Virtanen drunk at the Stampede and vomiting into a bowl that was held by the complainant.
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He said they exchanged numbers the next day, and over the next few months, would talk via Instagram direct message. He said they would also text casually every couple of days, and that the messages were flirtatious.
Virtanen said he asked the complainant, who was in Victoria, to come to Vancouver and that they arranged to meet up that night because of his busy schedule with the Canucks.
In response to the woman’s claim that she hadn’t known he was taking her to his hotel after picking her up, Virtanen said he told her about a minute before they arrived.
“Were you initially withholding it?” defence lawyer Colleen Elden asked.
“No,” Virtanen said.
“Did she raise any concerns?” the lawyer said.
“No.”
When asked about the alleged sex assault, Virtanen said the complainant “was active and she was an enthusiastic participant.” He said he “absolutely felt like she was into it. For me, it was obvious she wanted to have sex.”
The complainant said she verbally and physically resisted Virtanen.
At the start of the hearing Thursday, defence lawyer Brock Martland began by apologizing to the complainant for his “insensitive” comments the day before.
He had asked her why she didn’t “invent an excuse,” such as having a yeast infection or menstruation, to avoid a sexual interaction with Virtanen.
In finishing his cross-examination on Thursday, Martland continued to ask her about the Instagram messages she exchanged with the Instagram page Survivors Stories Project, which shared her story publicly, without naming the Canucks or Virtanen, in April 2021.
If you or someone you know has been a victim of sexual assault or is involved in an abusive situation, please visit the Canadian Resource Centre for Victims of Crime for help. They are also reachable toll-free at 1-877-232-2610.
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