Alleged serial sex assaulter of Vancouver women charged
Posted February 27, 2012 2:30 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
A Surrey, B.C., man is facing a dozen charges after four sex trade workers were picked up from Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside and then sexually assaulted, confined and beaten.
The first attack dates back to 1994, but RCMP say two assaults last December led them to arrest 43-year-old Shalendra Sharma.
RCMP Chief Supt. Dave Critchley says investigators linked the attacks after those two women made reports to police.
He says upwards of 50 investigators were then put on the case as the Burnaby Mounties worked with Vancouver Police to capture a suspect.
Critchley says Sharma was not known to police and police don’t believe he is linked to serial killer Robert Pickton, who was preying on women in the same neighbourhood in the 1990s.
Police have released photos of four vehicles related to the case, saying they believe there could be more victims, but have not released Sharma’s photograph or a description because they fear it could compromise the investigation.