Honk News – After a decade and a half post-incarceration, a former educator from Alberta faces new allegations of sexual misconduct.
During his prison term in 2010 for the sexual assault of students, ex-Calgary teacher Fred Archer informed the Parole Board of Canada that if additional victims of sexual assault chose to come forward, “so be it.”
On Wednesday, 15 years after that comment, the Calgary Police Service announced that Archer, now 80 years old, is confronting five new charges related to alleged incidents from the 1990s, which include sexual assault, sexual interference, and invitation to sexual touching.
Authorities report that two individuals stepped forward in 2024, claiming that Archer assaulted them during the years 1991 to 1995, when they were 12-year-old students in Grade 7 at John Ware School.
Authorities claim that Archer engaged in inappropriate contact with the initial alleged victim during tutoring sessions.
The second individual making a complaint claims he was attacked at Archer’s residence and inside his car.
Documents from the Parole Board of Canada acquired by CBC disclose information regarding Archer’s past offenses and his belief that “two other victims could come forward.”
Following the emergence of complainants, new charges have been examined in light of a recently certified class-action lawsuit initiated by former students against the Calgary Board of Education (CBE) and ex-teachers Archer and Michael Gregory.
Gregory, who served as a teacher at John Ware Junior High School from 1986 to 2006, tragically took his own life in 2021, just five days after facing charges of 17 counts related to sexual assault and exploitation involving six former students.
The legal action further alleges that Archer, who was also employed at John Ware during the 1990s, engaged in sexual and physical abuse of male students at the institution.
The legal document asserts that the two individuals collaborated and “offered support” to one another. It further asserts that multiple employees at the institution, including a vice-principal, were fully aware of the misconduct and had a responsibility to safeguard the students.
However, the first reports of the incidents emerged in 2006.
In 2009, Archer admitted guilt to two counts of sexual assault and one charge of gross indecency.
In 2010, the Alberta Court of Appeal reversed his non-custodial sentence, imposing a three-year prison term on Archer.