Montreal lawyer Daniel Rochefort charged with child sex crimes
These acts were allegedly committed between 2007 and 2012
Prominent Montreal civil lawyer Daniel Rochefort is facing nine charges involving child sex offences in addition to the counts brought against him last week.
Rochefort appeared at the Montreal courthouse on Monday.
The latest charges filed against him include sexual interference, sexual assault and invitation to sexual touching, all involving a minor.
These acts were allegedly committed between January 2007 and January 2012. All charges appear to involve a single alleged victim.
Rochefort is known for representing several police officers, including former Service de police de la Ville de Montréal (SPVM) director Philippe Pichet when Pichet served a formal notice to former Montreal mayor Valérie Plante in 2021.
The accused founded Rochefort & Associates in 1996, a firm specializing in labour law, administrative law, litigation, and commercial law, as well as human resources and management consulting.
The court has barred the accused from contacting the alleged victim and their family.
Last Friday, Rochefort was charged with producing child sexual abuse and exploitation material as well as making sexually explicit material available to a child.
According to the initial filing, Rochefort was caught in a Montreal police sting earlier this month in which an SPVM investigator posed as a 12-year-old girl.
Rochefort was detained throughout the weekend after the Crown opposed his release.
While defendants awaiting trial are typically released under certain conditions, a judge may order the accused to remain behind bars for specific reasons. These include flight risk, public safety, and the preservation of public confidence in the justice system.
The Crown prosecutor assigned to the case, Marissa Maria Kazadellis, declined to say the exact grounds for his continued detention.
"I cannot disclose further information at this time, but we have concerns that compel us to oppose [his release]," she said.
Rochefort will be detained until at least Thursday, the date of his next court appearance.
"I don't want to be here, but I think I have no choice, so I will consent to it," Rochefort said to the judge, when asked if he agreed to the postponement of the case until Thursday.
Gérald Soulière — Rochefort's lawyer — noted his client's "poor state" and "health problems."
"Detention is not pleasant for anyone," Soulière said, adding that his client contests the allegations against him.
"What we are doing now is equivalent to pleading not guilty without being obligated to state it as such," he said.
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