Human trafficking case adjourned while defence awaits disclosure

By Delon Shurtz on November 13, 2021.

LETHBRIDGE HERALDdshurtz@lethbridgeherald.com

Lawyers for several individuals charged in relation to human-trafficking continue to adjourn their court matters while they wait to receive disclosure from the Crown’s office.
The matters for six of eight adults charged during the summer were in Lethbridge provincial court Friday, but lawyers were unable to do anything more than adjourn their cases until next month. The lawyers explained they have received only a small amount of disclosure, or none at all, and have been unable to make any progress on their matters.
Lethbridge Crown Prosecutor Clayton Giles told court the case has only recently been assigned to Special Prosecutions in Calgary, and there is a significant amount of disclosure to work through, which is causing the delays.
Police reported in August that several individuals had selected and groomed a 15-year-old girl and took her to specific locations where sex offences took place. The same individuals had also engaged in sexual activity with a 13-year-old girl.
Lethbridge police said three additional victims had also come forward in connection with the investigation.
The accused are Khaled Alsaid, Fadi Chtewi, Meriton Krasniqi, Abdullah Mohammad, Mohammad Neirabani, Mahmoud Neirabani, Mohammad Zafari and Ziyaad Noor. The charges against Krasniqi and Noor were not in court Friday, and were previously scheduled for court hearings Dec. 3 and Nov. 19 respectively. Noor, a Calgary physician, stopped practicing medicine after he was charged, and the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Alberta is conducting its own investigation.
The remaining adults, excluding Chtewi, return to court Dec. 17. Chtewi’s next court hearing is scheduled for Dec. 3.
Two youth, who cannot be identified because of their age, have also been charged.
Although the 10 accused don’t face all the same allegations, charges include trafficking persons under 18, sexual assault, aggravated sexual assault, and sexual interference. Noor is charged with sexual interference, invitation to sexual touching, sexual assault, sexual assault causing bodily harm, sexual assault — party to offence with another person, aggravated sexual assault and trafficking persons under the age of 18.
All the accused were previously released on bail.

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