Judge rules Frank Stronach sex crimes case can advance to trial
“I don’t even know these women,” Frank Stronach told a small entourage of supporters this week after facing complainants accusing him of sex crimes for the first time in court. Speaking during a break in a preliminary hearing that examined two of the most serious charges he faces, the 92-year-old billionaire stopped talking after being told journalists were within earshot.
Stronach’s reputation as the ultimate Canadian success story was called into question when he was charged with five sex-related offences last June. Since then, the charge sheet has expanded, and the case has been split into separate proceedings in Toronto and York Region.
Insisting his name is being smeared by individuals seeking financial gain, Stronach has said he plans to plead not guilty when trials commence next year. As things stand, he faces a total of 18 charges, ranging from indecent assault to forceable confinement and rape, based on alleged incidents with 13 women taking place between 1977 and last year.
For various reasons, not all criminal cases qualify for preliminary hearings, which allow charges to be screened before an individual is subjected to a full trial. Generally speaking, defendants facing a maximum sentence of 14 years or more can request an advance opportunity to hear a presentation of the evidence against them and have witnesses cross-examined by their lawyers.
Unlike in criminal trials, the prosecution isn’t expected to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt in a pre-trial hearing. The evidence presented — which is subject to a publication ban — simply needs to convince a judge that a trial is technically warranted without considering issues related to credibility.
Stronach’s preliminary hearing, which started April 11 and wrapped up Thursday, examined two historic charges of rape in the Toronto-based proceedings. After four days of hearing testimony and related legal arguments, Ontario Court Justice Jaki Freeman ruled the examined charges could advance to trial.
Stronach’s lawyer, Leora Shemesh, was unfazed by the court decision. Noting the threshold for moving criminal charges forward is extremely low, she said nobody should read anything into the outcome. “I am extremely happy with how the case against my client is unfolding,” she said.
Despite looking fit for his age, Stronach needed headphones to hear the proceedings. He declined to speak to the media after the hearing but expressed confidence in his lawyer during a break. “You’re learning from the best,” he told two law students in attendance.
Stronach emigrated to Canada in 1954 and eventually transformed a small tool-and-die shop into the Magna International Inc. auto parts empire. His business success and philanthropic endeavours led to memberships in both the Order of Canada and the Canadian Business Hall of Fame.
Following Stronach’s arrest last year, Magna launched an internal review of historical records seeking to identify possible cases of misconduct by its founder, who relinquished control of the company in 2010 and stepped down as board chair in 2012. The initial results included just one settlement related to an employee harassment allegation at a now bankrupt spinoff company.
Magna didn’t immediately respond to a request for an update on its investigation, which has been complicated by the passage of time, but spokesperson Tracy Fuerst said there was nothing new to report in late February.
While insisting he has never mistreated women, Stronach told the CBC last year that a previous lawyer advised him decades ago to pay off two females claiming he molested them after a night out at Rooney’s, a posh Toronto nightclub/restaurant that Stronach owned in the 1980s. He did not say if the payoff was made personally or through one of his companies.
After Stronach left Magna and a related venture with controversial golden handshakes collectively worth about $2 billion, a high-profile dispute over how the fortune was being deployed strained relationships with his children Belinda and Andrew Stronach. No immediate family members attended the preliminary hearing.
Elfriede Stronach, the billionaire’s wife of 60 years, died in early 2024.
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