The arrest of a 54-year-old Saskatoon man on sexual assault charges in Winnipeg is raising eyebrows with his former colleagues.
Terry Stannard is accused of assaulting two teenage boys between 2002 and 2008 while he worked at Winnipeg's Cinema City.
“He had these really young boys that tagged around with him and they were never there without him,” said Krista Vander Griend, a former co-worker of Stannard.
Vander Griend worked with Stannard at the Saskatoon Rainbow Cinema around 2010.
According to police, the boys came forward in June. Winnipeg police then tracked Stannard to Saskatoon.
“They extended the radius of those warrants to include Saskatchewan and we were asked to go and make the arrest of Mr. Stannard, which we did,” said Allyson Edwards, spokesperson for Saskatoon Police Service.
Vander Griend wasn’t the only former Rainbow employee who was uncomfortable with her bosses’ relationship with a few young teens.
“I never witnessed any touching, and believe me I was on the lookout for it, it was just when he’d come in late at night with him or they’d say ‘Oh, Terry picked me up last night from a party,’ and I was just like ‘That’s so not okay,’” said Meagan Shpyth, a former co-worker.
According to Shpyth, the boys did odd jobs for Stannard off the books. The Winnipeg police believe the teens there also worked for the accused when their alleged abuse occurred.
Saskatoon police said they haven't received any official reports of abuse here in Saskatoon, but they're urging anyone with information about Stannard to come forward.
Rainbow Cinema's parent company, Magic Lantern Theatres, confirmed Stannard was still working for them when he was arrested, but said he's now on a leave of absence. The company’s head office also said they've never received any formal complains about him.
