Bre McAdam
Saskatoon StarPhoenix
A Saskatoon man convicted of sexually touching an 11-year-old girl on three occasions in 2020 is nowhere to be found.
An arrest warrant was issued Friday when it was apparent that Eric Michael Pohorecky wasn’t coming to court for his sentencing hearing at Saskatoon Court of King’s Bench, Crown prosecutor Lana Morelli said.
In June, Pohorecky, 63, was found guilty of sexual assault and touching a child for a sexual purpose after a judge-alone trial. He was allowed to remain out of custody until his sentencing, despite the Crown arguing for his detention.
Justice David Gereke said the Crown proved he squeezed the victim’s buttocks while walking past her in his kitchen, reached under a blanket and touched her thigh while she was on his couch and slid his hand across her breasts after reaching over her lap to set down groceries while she was seated in his van.
Pohorecky’s sentencing hearing was adjourned last month after his previous lawyer withdrew. Logan Marchand said he was retained about a week later.
“Prior to court starting, a family friend had approached me and indicated that Mr. Pohorecky wasn’t at home, that his family wasn’t aware of his whereabouts, and at that point, it wasn’t clear if Mr. Pohorecky had absconded, or whether this was a situation of an accident or self-harm,” he told the StarPhoenix.
Marchand said police conducted a wellness check but couldn’t find him. He couldn’t say if Pohorecky is now considered a missing person.
Morelli said the Canada-wide, unendorsed arrest warrant ensures Pohorecky cannot be released by police if he’s located.
Marchand said he’d been corresponding with his client leading up to the court date, but couldn’t say when he last spoke to him. He said their last conversation was about what to expect at the sentencing, and “this was a surprise for everybody involved.”
“It’s one of those unfortunate situations where there’s a few different possible reasons for why what happened today happened. Some of them are malicious and then others are unfortunate,” Marchand said.
“Nobody knows what has happened or where he has gone, and that’s really all we can say at this time.”
Pohorecky testified at his trial that he didn’t intentionally touch the girl, who he said was often at his house during the timeframe of the offences.
He was released on bail shortly after he was charged in April 2022 with four counts of sexual assault against four girls under the age of 16 between 2016 and 2021.
The next month, he was charged with another count of sexual assault and sexual interference after further investigation. One set of charges was stayed at the conclusion of his preliminary hearing last year.
His remaining trials were scheduled for this month, but Morelli and Marchand confirmed they will not go ahead as planned.