Edmonton Institution worker charged with sexually assaulting female colleague

A former employee atEdmonton's maximum security prison is accused of sexually assaulting and using a weapon to assaulta former female correctional officer at the institution.

In the autumn of 2017, Correctional Service Canada alerted policeto allegations of criminal conduct at Edmonton Institution, police said in a news release Wednesday.

On Tuesday, Edmonton police announced charges had been laid againstGraham Trevor Spilsbury.

Court documents allege the 50-year-old sexually assaulted a co-worker between Jan. 1, 2015, and Jan. 31, 2016. Spilsbury is also accused of using a rubber glove or threatening to use it to assault the same woman between Jan. 1, 2010, and Jan. 31, 2016.

Spilsburyhas beenreleased from custody and is scheduled to make his first court appearance on April 17.

Police said they willnot comment further on the charges.

The troubled prison isat the centre of several criminal and internalinvestigations and lawsuits filed by guards and inmates.

Arash of allegations of harassment, intimidation and bullying have resulted in the firing ofseveral workers.

In an e-mailed statement, a Correctional Service Canada spokesperson confirmedSpilsburyis a former CSC employee who was terminated as part of an internal disciplinary investigation that also saw six other employees terminated.

Prisoner rights lawyers have called for a public inquiry into the "cesspool of cruelty, corruption and violence" at Edmonton Institution.

• 'Cesspool of cruelty, corruption and violence': Advocates call for inquiry at Edmonton prison
• Edmonton Institution runs on 'culture of fear' and intimidation, report finds

Last year, four female guards at the prison also filed a $43.4-million lawsuit against the CSC and the Union of Canadian Correctional Officers. The women claimed they suffered prolonged abuse from male colleagues that included waterboarding, assaults, sexual assaults, bullying and intimidation.

• Explosive allegations against male prison guards contained in lawsuit

The suit claimed amale guard pushed one woman over a desk, stuck his hand down her pants and locked a set of handcuffs through her underwear.

The statement of claim alleges one defendant, identified only as "Mr. Doe #1," used rubber gloves to intimidate his female co-workers.

"Mr. Doe #1 would urinate into rubber gloves, tie them off and threaten to throw them," the lawsuit said. "On two occasions, he did. He would keep several hidden in the office for months at a time as a grim reminder of the consequences for disobeying him."

The lawsuit did not name the alleged perpetrators and none of the allegations has been proven in court.

The law office representing the women would not confirm Wednesday whether Spilsburyis one of the guards referred to in the lawsuit.