A man accused of committing five sexual assaults in close proximity to Winnipeg’s Health Sciences Centre last summer has entered a plea of guilty.
Donovan Mohammed, accompanied by a sheriff’s officer, appeared in court on Friday afternoon and quietly affirmed his admission of guilt to his lawyer.
The series of assaults occurred within a one-hour timeframe on the evening of July 2, 2025, in the vicinity of HSC. Following his arrest the next day, Mohammed confessed to the assaults, attributing his actions to not taking prescribed medication, as stated by Crown attorney Andrea Lett.
Upon his arrest, law enforcement discovered an eight-inch blade knife concealed in Mohammed’s waistband, along with a visitor slip from Health Sciences Centre dated on the day of the assaults.
The victims of the assaults, which targeted strangers including nurses leaving their shifts, provided detailed descriptions of Mohammed that matched surveillance footage. However, during a photo lineup, they either refrained from identifying him or did not select him.
In court, Mohammed’s defense attorney, Sierra Bednarz, mentioned that Mohammed had a hazy recollection of the events but acknowledged the evidence against him.
Prosecutors have agreed not to seek a sentence exceeding eight years for Mohammed, taking into account the time he has been in custody since his arrest, in adherence to the Criminal Code principle aiming to prevent excessively harsh or lengthy sentences.
The first assault involved a 14-year-old girl at approximately 6:50 p.m., followed by subsequent attacks on a 26-year-old woman, a 22-year-old woman, and a 24-year-old woman at different locations near HSC. The fifth assault targeted a 30-year-old woman, who was 25 weeks pregnant, causing her physical distress and necessitating a fetal assessment.
Mohammed is slated for sentencing in the upcoming year, with other charges against him being dropped.
