Luring suspect almost misses court date
Judge warns Firas Alobaid, 21, of Fredericton, he narrowly avoided being taken into custody when he showed up late for a pre-trial conference Monday
A Fredericton man accused of luring teenage girls over Snapchat and sexually assaulting them was late for a pre-trial conference Monday ahead of his jury trial, earning him a sharp rebuke from the judge.
Firas Alobaid, 21, of Needham Street, is scheduled to stand trial before a judge and jury in the Court of King’s Bench beginning Oct. 19.
The RCMP arrested him last summer and charged him with online-luring and sex-crime offences, stemming from alleged communications and encounters with three teenage girls in the Oromocto area between January and June 2022.
The identities of the three underage complainants are subject to a court-ordered publication ban.
The case was back on the King’s Bench docket Monday before Justice Thomas Christie at the Burton Courthouse, with the Crown and defence lawyers gathering before the judge to hash out procedural issues ahead of the jury trial in the fall.
There was just one hitch: while prosecutor Rachel Anstey and defence lawyer Adrian Forsythe were on hand, the defendant wasn’t present when Christie called the case.
Anstey said a warrant would have to be issued for Alobaid’s arrest to maintain the court’s jurisdiction over the case, though she noted the court had the option to hold that warrant on the file for a time.
However, the defendant did show up while court was still in session, albeit about 20 minutes late.
“You were within minutes of having a warrant issued for your apprehension,” Christie told Alobiad.
Regarding pre-trial issues, the judge recalled the Crown informing the court it was possible additional charges might be laid in the case.
Anstey said there’s been no word from RCMP investigators on that possibility, but she doesn’t anticipate any new developments that might affect the upcoming trial dates.
Forsythe said the defence has yet to receive the unsealed and vetted search warrants and informations to obtain (ITOs) those warrants, but he expects they’ll be in hand ahead of the trial and in time for the defence to prepare.
He said if the forthcoming perusal of those documents might require additional time during voir-dire hearings on admissibility of evidence, the defence would notify the court as soon as possible.
Anstey said the search warrants and ITOs should be ready in the next three weeks.
Christie suggested they hold another pre-trial conference to ensure things run smoothly once it comes time to impanel a jury, and he scheduled it for Aug. 10.
He strongly advised Alobaid to arrive on time for that court appearance.
“If I have to send the sheriffs to pick you up, they won’t be taking you back home,” the judge said.
Alobaid faces a long list of charges related to the RCMP investigation conducted last year.
With regarding to Complainant No. 1, he faces indictable charges of sexual assault, sexual touching, invitation to sexual touching and online luring, alleged to have occurred between Jan. 1 and June 12, 2022.
He’s charged with additional counts of sexual assault, sexual touching, invitation to sexual touching and online communication for the purpose of committing a child-pornography crime, between April 1 and June 12, 2022, relating to Complainant No. 2.
A third round of charges - sexual assault, sexual touching and online luring - allege events between June 1-10, 2022, relating to the third complainant.
Furthermore, Alobaid is accused of threatening to kill complainants No. 1 and No. 2, and possessing a firearm or imitation firearm, both on June 12.
In a news release issued in June 2022, the RCMP said it launched its investigation after receiving reports about three girls in the Oromocto area being sexually assaulted after being lured online.
The Mounties said investigators believe a suspect was targeting teenage girls by using Snapchat near Fredericton and Oromocto secondary schools and using the app’s “Add Friends Nearby” function.
Alobaid was arrested June 18, 2022, and was remanded into custody. However, he was released on conditions after a mandatory detention review in November.
One of the conditions of his release was a $10,000 surety, which his parents deposited with the court last fall. That sum could be forfeited if he violates any of the conditions on his release order.
Don MacPherson can be contacted at ftonindependent@gmail.com.