The Liberal Party says it is removing a candidate from a Toronto riding after a dropped sexual assault charge against him was revealed.
In a statement issued Saturday morning, the party said Kevin Vuong will not be a member of the Liberal caucus should he be elected Monday and that the party takes any allegation “extremely seriously.”
Mr. Vuong is running in the Liberal stronghold of Spadina–Fort York. His name will remain on the ballot because the deadline to remove candidates has passed.
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On Friday, the Liberals said his campaign would be put on “pause” after the Toronto Star reported that he had been charged with sexual assault in 2019, though the charge was later dropped. Mr. Vuong said in a statement that the allegations are false and he vigorously defended them at the time.
At a campaign stop in Windsor, Ont., Mr. Trudeau said Friday that the Liberals were unaware of the dropped charge until the Toronto Star reported it. He also said that the party was looking into the matter.
Mr. Vuong is also a reservist in the navy. Daniel Le Bouthillier, a spokesman for the Department of National Defence, said late Friday that given currently available information, Mr. Vuong did not inform his chain of command about the matter, even though there was an expectation that he do so. He added that the Canadian Armed Forces “are looking into the matter further.”
Mr. Vuong was acclaimed the Liberal candidate for Spadina–Fort York on Aug. 13.
The riding was represented in the last Parliament by Liberal Adam Vaughan, who decided not to run again.
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