Sudbury murderer makes court appearance on new sex assault charges
The man convicted of murdering a Sudbury woman in 1998 appeared in court by video from prison Wednesday morning.
Renee Sweeney was a 23-year-old student at Laurentian University who worked as a part-time clerk at Adults Only Video. She was stabbed to death while working at the store sometime between 11 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. on Jan. 27, 1998. (File)
Robert Steven Wright was charged in December with two counts of sexual assault and one count each of criminal harassment and forcible confinement.
Wright is currently serving a life sentence at a penitentiary in the Kingston, Ont., area after being found guilty of second-degree murder in March 2023 and is eligible for parole after serving 12 years.
"Criminal investigators from the North Bay Police Service received information from the Greater Sudbury Police Service in regards to a historical sexual assault that had occurred in North Bay between 2015 and 2016,” North Bay police said in a news release Dec. 14.
Wright was arrested in December 2018 for the murder of Renee Sweeney while working as a lab tech at the North Bay hospital. He has been in jail ever since.
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He appeared in video remand court from prison with a long, greying beard and wearing a blue T-shirt and glasses.
Attorney Aditi Iyer acted on Wright's behalf during the hearing.
She is listed online under Legal Aid Ontario and Wilkinson Legal in Toronto.
Iyer said the defence has received some initial disclosure, but they are still waiting for more, including the complainant's statement.
The case has been adjourned for one month.
The sexual assault allegations have not been proven in court.
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