A 59-year-old Courtenay resident facing 10 charges for touching children inappropriately at the Comox Valley Aquatic Centre last week is now facing breach of his bail conditions.
Wolfgang Kurt Busch appeared in court Thursday because he did not report to a bail supervisor as directed and he left the province without written consent of the bail supervisor when he left the country.
Looking tired with dishevelled hair, Busch sat slumped in the prisoner’s box wearing jeans and a T-shirt and shackles around his ankles as defence lawyer Matthew Low, Crown counsel Bruce Morrison and provincial court judge Peter Doherty presided over the hearing.
Doherty imposed a $10,000 cash bail or a $50,000 surety on Busch, with a variety of additional conditions including a 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew and a condition not to leave Vancouver Island without prior approval from his bail supervisor.
Based in Merville, Busch is the owner and operator of Wolf Manufacturing Inc., a boat-building company he has owned since 1995.
According to his website, Busch graduated with honours from Sydney Technical College in Australia, and began his welding career with Hawker de Haviland’s boat division. He moved to Canada in late 1973 and moved to Vancouver Island in 1988.
Following a bail hearing with a judge via telephone last weekend, Busch was released from custody on $10,000 bail with strict conditions, including not to be alone or have any communication with a person under the age of 18, not to be alone or have any communication with a person under the age of 18 and not to be within 300 metres of any public park, schoolground, daycare centre.
Busch’s next court appearance is scheduled for Feb. 17 at 9 a.m.
In a press release from the Comox Valley Regional District, which oversees the aquatic centre, Leigh Carter, general manager of public affairs and information systems reinforced the serious nature of the incident.
“There have been some statements made publicly to the effect that our staff at the aquatic centre pool are not trained, and we must clarify that. All our lifeguards take the (Water Safety Instructor – Red Cross) training and the National Lifeguards Standard (NLS) training,” she said.
“In addition to the water-related training, a component of the NLS training covers the procedure to be taken if someone is exhibiting suspicious behaviour of any type — lewd, indecent, ‘lurking,’ threatening and so on.”
Carter added there are video cameras in the pool area, security guards on contract who patrol the area, a lifeguard ‘rotation’ so there can be a monitoring of facility washrooms and other areas around the pool, while still keeping a presence on the pool deck.
The facility does not allow cell phones in the pool or changeroom areas to prevent them being used to take and circulate picture, and it also does not allow video cameras in that area or photos to be taken of any participants without their permission, she noted.
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