Photo: RCMP
Police photos of Taylor Dueck with different hair length and facial hair.
A convicted child predator who’s most recently been accused of assaulting an 11-year-old girl in a Kelowna bathroom last month remains behind bars for now, following a bail hearing Wednesday. But a judge is expected to make a decision on his potential release next week.
Taylor Dueck, 29, was arrested last month and charged with sexual interference, invitation to sexual touching and breach of probation, following an alleged incident at a Kelowna equestrian facility.
The young child was able to flee from Dueck and tell her parents about the alleged assault, who then contacted police. Dueck has been in custody since his arrest.
Dueck sought bail during a hearing in Kelowna court Wednesday morning, with both the Crown and defence making submissions. But following the hearing, Judge Michelle Daneliuk said she would need to further review submissions before making her decision.
All submissions made during Wednesday’s bail hearing are covered under a routine publication ban for bail hearings. The ban is in place to ensure a potential jury will be unbiased if the case goes to trial.
Dueck appeared in court by video from Okanagan Correctional Centre. He wore a jail-issued red sweatsuit and appeared to rock back and forth throughout much of the hearing.
Judge Daneliuk is expected to deliver her judgment on Dueck’s bail release next week.
Past convictions
Dueck was under probation conditions when the alleged Feb. 9, 2024 incident occurred, having served a previous 12-month sentence for a conviction of sexual interference of a person under 16.
According to parole documents, the 2020 incident in Mission involved Dueck offering a 10-year-old girl $20 and asking her to join him in a tent to “do something,”
“During an interview with police you admitted to bending down and hugging the child from behind, touching her between her stomach and her ‘privates,’ the Parole documents state.
“You also acknowledged that you might have touched her vagina when you grabbed the victim around the waist. You admitted to police that you hugged the child for ‘self-gratification’ and that if she hadn’t then run out of the tent, you would have followed through and done more.”
This incident occurred less than two months after he had been released following a 4.5-year jail sentence for sexually assaulting four different teenage girls in 2014, including one incident where he threatened the victim with a knife.
Politicians respond
Since Castanet first reported on the incident, Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth has said he’s ordered a full investigation into how Dueck was allowed to be in a position to allegedly reoffend again.
On Tuesday, Kelowna-Mission MLA Renee Merrifield grilled the government in the Legislature over the “total failure” that she says allowed the alleged attack to occur.
While police in Abbotsford have previously issued a public warning about Dueck’s release in their community, a similar warning was not made when he Dueck was released in Kelowna.
Cpl. Michael Gauthier of the Kelowna RCMP previously told Castanet that the detachment “sought” a public interest disclosure about Dueck, “however the threshold was not met in this case based on the totality of the circumstances.”
It’s not clear who made that determination, but Cpl. Gauthier said “I encourage you to reach out to BC Corrections on this matter.”
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