In a significant development, the Canadian police have issued an apology to a woman who claims to be the victim of an alleged sexual assault by five professional ice hockey players. The authorities acknowledged that they failed to adequately gather evidence in this closely-watched case, which involves NHL's Carter Hart, Michael McLeod, Dillon Dube, and Cal Foote, along with Alex Formenton, who plays in Europe.

The charges against the players, which include an additional charge of sexual assault for McLeod, were filed last week. In court on Monday, none of the accused entered a plea, but their lawyers have previously denied any wrongdoing on behalf of their clients. The charges stem from a lawsuit filed by a woman who alleges she was assaulted in a hotel room in June 2018 by some members of the Canadian junior team following a gala celebrating their world championship gold medal.

The London, Ontario police have apologized for the six-year delay in the case, which they initially closed citing "insufficient grounds" to lay charges. "I want to extend, on behalf of the London police service, my sincerest apology to the [alleged] victim, to her family, for the amount of time that it has taken to reach this point," said Chief Thai Truong of the London Police. He acknowledged that dealing with cases of sexual violence is challenging for all victims and survivors.

After immense public scrutiny, the police reopened the case in 2022. Chief Truong noted that explaining the reason for the delay in reopening the investigation would be "completely inappropriate" as it could potentially jeopardize the case against the five men. The police stated that new evidence and information collected since the case was reopened have led to the charges, and they have the utmost confidence in their investigation team.

Parallel investigations were also conducted by Hockey Canada and the NHL. Previously, the NHL commissioner, Gary Bettman, had promised transparency in their findings; however, last week he announced that the NHL would not release its findings until after the court proceedings are completed. This case is part of a larger scandal that has sent shockwaves through the sport and Hockey Canada as a governing body.

It has come to light that in the years following the closure of the police investigation, the woman filed a multimillion dollar lawsuit against Hockey Canada, the Canadian Hockey League, and eight players involved. The claim has since been settled for an undisclosed amount. Hockey Canada revealed to a parliamentary committee in 2022 that they had secretly paid nearly C$9m (US$6.6m) to 21 complainants of sexual misconduct, with funds largely collected from young players' registration fees.

Further investigations by national media outlets disclosed that Hockey Canada failed to disclose the existence of a second secret fund to finance legal efforts against sexual assault claims. These revelations caused Canada's Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, to express loss of confidence in the ice hockey governing body.

During Monday's court appearance, prosecutors indicated that a significant amount of disclosure would be provided to the defense in the coming days. Should the trial proceed with all men together, their legal teams will need to decide whether they want a judge or jury trial. The court has also implemented a ban on publicly identifying the alleged victim. The defendants are scheduled to return to court on April 30.