Additional charges related to historical sexual abuse laid against Coquitlam man

COQUITLAM, B.C. – Police say a 75-year-old Coquitlam man is facing seven additional charges related to allegations of historical sexual assault.

They say Raymond Howard Gaglardi has been charged with six counts of sexual assault and one count of sexual exploitation in addition to six previous charges laid in July.

At that time, police said the alleged offences took place atthe accused’s home, where he offered therapy sessions to young people he met primarily through their parents at various churches he was associated with in Coquitlam and Port Coquitlam.

In a news release detailing the latest charges on Wednesday, the Mounties say all nine complainants were young men or teen boys in Coquitlam at the time of the alleged offences and the investigation is now refocusing on crimes that may have happened elsewhere.

They say one of the avenues investigators are pursuing includes witnesses or alleged victims who may have been involved in the Glad Tidings church in Vancouver or Glad Tidings summer camp in Sechelt in the 1970s and 1980s.

Police say their investigation began last December and they’re appealing to any other alleged victims to come forward.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 30, 2020.