A Sarnia, Ont. massage therapist is facing a charge of sexual assault in connection with an allegation involving a client, police said Tuesday.
Few details have been provided, but police said in a media release that the alleged sexual assault took place during a massage session on Aug. 9.
The accused, identified by police as Manuel Enrique Batista, 35, faces a charge of sexual assault, police said.
“At this time the Sarnia Police Service is reaching out to the public to ensure there are no other victims,” police said in a statement.
Batista operates a mobile massage therapy business in Sarnia, Mivida Massage, according to a post by the Sarnia-Lambton Economic Partnership from 2019.
Mivida’s Facebook and Instagram profiles have since been taken down.
According to the College of Massage Therapists of Ontario registry, the 35-year-old began working as a massage therapist in 2018 after graduating from Lambton College.
As of Aug. 16, Batista is not authorized to practice as a result of the criminal charges, the listing says.
He is also barred from contacting the client, going to places where the client is known to be, and possessing weapons as part of an undertaking he signed with police, the listing says.
— with files from Global News’ Matthew Trevithick