‘Tiger’ Williams continued tour while his alleged victim flew home to Canada

OTTAWA—The victim of an alleged assault by Dave “Tiger” Williams on-board a military flight returned home to Canada while the retired hockey star continued his goodwill tour with Canadian troops abroad.
Defence department officials confirmed Tuesday that the victim of the alleged assault during the December trip returned home from Latvia with a number of others.
“The victim was subsequently offered and accepted the option to return home on a civilian flight accompanied by others,” department spokesperson Daniel Le Bouthillier said in a statement.
“This was done so that we could distance the victim from the accused and to ensure they can receive the requisite support, as applicable,” he said.
Military police announced Friday that Williams — whose NHL career started as a Maple Leafs enforcer — had been charged with one count of assault and one count of sexual assault.
Williams’ lawyer Michael Lacy said on Friday that it’s alleged the hockey star “inappropriately touched the complainant over clothing on the buttocks.
“Tiger denies any wrongdoing and is confident he will be vindicated,” Lacy said in a statement.
Williams, 64, was part of a contingent on a pre-Christmas morale tour to visit Canadian troops deployed overseas. The military has declined to identify other members of the group.
First stop on the tour was Greece, where they visited with sailors on-board the Canadian frigate HMCS Charlottetown.
The alleged assault happened during the flight to Latvia from Greece on-board a CC-150 Polaris aircraft. Defence officials declined to say Tuesday when they were first notified of the allegations. However, the military suggested last week that the assault was reported before the aircraft even landed.
Also on-board was Lt.-Gen. Alain Parent, the vice chief of defence staff, the second-highest ranking officer. However, officials say he did not become aware of the incident until much later.
Williams continued with the goodwill tour with Canadians soldiers deployed on a NATO mission in Latvia, taking part in a hockey game with military personnel.
Le Bouthillier said Williams was allowed to remain with the rest of the group “to ensure sufficient distance from the victim, noting as well that he was not charged at the time and it was a fluid situation.”
“The bottom line is that we took care of the victim with respect and dignity, while dealing with the accused through a thorough and expedient police investigation,” he said.
Though charged by military police, the charges against Williams will be dealt with in civilian court in Ottawa.