Ontario man charged in violent attack on B.C. teenager with autism
A young man has been charged nearly a year after an assault on a teenager in Richmond, B.C.
Mounties in the Metro Vancouver city announced Thursday that Dominic Rallon Jao has been charged with assault with bodily harm.
Jao, 21, is a resident of Ontario, the RCMP said in a news release.
His charge stems from an incident on the evening of Aug. 21, 2020.
It was reported that a teen with autism was playing basketball with a group of people in Richmond when he was assaulted.
The alleged assault was reported to police by two witnesses, but by the time the officers reached the scene, the victim was gone.
He was located in a nearby hospital with significant injuries.
About a week after the assault, which police called "unprovoked," the victim's family spoke to CTV News about the violent attack on the 18-year-old.
His family said the teen was playing basketball at Richmond Secondary School at the time. They said the teen was accused by his attacker of being too loud.
His friends, according to the family, explained that the teen has a developmental disability, and encouraged the attacker to let it go.
Instead, the teen was left with a badly split lip that needed stitches, lacerations and abrasions on his neck and arms, and a concussion.
The family said the teen left the scene of the attack and made his way home, where they found him disoriented, covered in blood and unable to explain what happened.
His parents took him to hospital, where he was later located by Mounties. It was police who explained to the victim's parents what had happened.
"Speaking to the victim's father it's evident the profound impact this incident has had on their family," Richmond RCMP Cpl. Adriana O'Malley said in a statement Thursday.
"This was felt by our investigators who worked tirelessly throughout this investigation to support and, in the words of the victim's father, 'create a mental comfort zone' for his son."
Back in August, police told CTV News they'd identified a suspect, but that charges had not been laid as they appealed for more witnesses to come forward.
The allegation against Jao has not been proven in court.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING New York appeals court overturns Harvey Weinstein's 2020 rape conviction from landmark #MeToo trial
New York’s highest court on Thursday overturned Harvey Weinstein’s 2020 rape conviction, finding the judge at the landmark #MeToo trial prejudiced the ex-movie mogul with improper rulings, including a decision to let women testify about allegations that weren’t part of the case.
BREAKING Monthly earnings rise, payroll employment falls: jobs report
The number of vacant jobs in Canada increased in February, while monthly payroll employment decreased in food services, manufacturing, and retail trade, among other sectors.
Doctors say capital gains tax changes will jeopardize their retirement. Is that true?
The Canadian Medical Association asserts the Liberals' proposed changes to capital gains taxation will put doctors' retirement savings in jeopardy, but some financial experts insist incorporated professionals are not as doomed as they say they are.
Remains from a mother-daughter cold case were found nearly 24 years later, after a deathbed confession from the suspect
A West Virginia father is getting some sense of closure after authorities found the remains of his young daughter and her mother following a deathbed confession from the man believed to have fatally shot them nearly two decades ago.
Something in the water? Canadian family latest to spot elusive 'Loch Ness Monster'
For centuries, people have wondered what, if anything, might be lurking beneath the surface of Loch Ness in Scotland. When Canadian couple Parry Malm and Shannon Wiseman visited the Scottish highlands earlier this month with their two children, they didn’t expect to become part of the mystery.
What do weight loss drugs mean for a diet industry built on eating less and exercising more?
Recent injected drugs like Wegovy and its predecessor, the diabetes medication Ozempic, are reshaping the health and fitness industries.
2 military horses that broke free and ran loose across London are in serious condition
Two military horses that bolted and ran miles through the streets of London after being spooked by construction noise and tossing their riders were in a serious condition and required operations, a British government official said Thursday.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
Fair in Ontario, flurries in Labrador: Weather systems make for an erratic spring
It's no secret that spring can be a tumultuous time for Canadian weather, and as an unseasonably mild El Nino winter gives way to summer, there's bound to be a few swings in temperature that seem out of the ordinary. From Ontario to the Atlantic, though, this week is about to feel a little erratic.