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A prominent University of Alberta researcher and his wife are facing charges related to the alleged sexual assault and confinement of a minor, the Journal has learned.
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& ~6 Q' |. ~7 u1 [' K7 r5 xZhixiang Wang, 51, is facing one count of sexual assault and one count of sexual contact with a child for offences allegedly carried out between Nov. 2009 and May 31, 2010, court records show.: Q( D. X# [9 J ~; R. |
! u; Y4 ]0 E* iHis wife, Xinmei Chen, 49, is charged with one count of unlawful confinement of a child between May 31, 2010 and Jan. 29, 2013, the records show.
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The same victim, a girl under the age of 16, is listed in both cases. y- m" ^. j8 I* u+ c, g: O
" I; v/ P& _2 W2 W( Y; L3 g# sBoth were arrested at Edmonton police headquarters and charged on Feb. 14, police spokesman Scott Pattison said in an email. There are no other potential victims, he added.
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( p0 _' ~9 z) }& KWang, an associate professor in the university’s department of medical genetics, was named a senior heritage scholar in 2000 by the Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research.
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According to an article about Wang in the foundation’s fall 2003 issue, Wang joined the U of A in 1999. He had been studying cell biology of locusts, but according to the article, made the switch to medical-related research in 1994 while pursuing post-doctoral research at the University of Toronto.% Z3 a0 s* S* s: H
: k2 {) u3 [ `1 M. @At the time, the article says, Wang’s research focused on a protein found in most body fluids that, in high levels, can lead to the development of breast cancer.& }% C, Q/ T& }6 [7 `# l1 I8 |
, p$ ?; `( r( g: v+ E2 n3 ~He has numerous academic publications to his name, including several authored with Chen, who is listed on the U of A website as a technician working in Wang’s lab.
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. i4 z. D: B' o6 E/ KWang’s cancer research is considered among the most promising in Canada. In 2005, he was awarded a grant from the Canadian Cancer Society worth more than $350,000. His research explored how overactivity in certain proteins that play an important role in cell growth can be linked to the development of skin and brain cancers.- F- A/ g& l; O# {3 j |0 z
8 V% P+ _5 m8 d( h; sU of A spokesman Bryan Alary confirmed in an email that both Wang and Chen are university employees currently on leave., w' D4 i$ |: T$ }1 Z. K
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The university considers cases where an employee is charged criminally on a case-by-case basis, Alary said.
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“Factors the university would take into account include whether there is a real or perceived connection between the charges and the person’s employment and whether the person’s presence on campus posed a real or perceived danger to the university or members of its community,” he said., T9 j% q7 [- f! L% X
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Both Chen and Wang made their first appearance in Edmonton court on Feb. 14 and were released on bail.
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3 i$ ~0 [# C* N& D [8 CTheir next court appearance is scheduled for March 13.; S/ s o8 `9 _9 i. C
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