Manitoba man charged with historic sexual assaults dating back to 1980s

Winnipeg police have one man in custody in connection to three sexual assaults on children dating back to the 1980s.

Police said the Child Abuse Unit was contacted in December 2021 by a survivor of sexual assault that happened in Winnipeg.

Police started to investigate the situation and found two more survivors of sexual assaults that happened in the 1980s.

All three people, who are now adults, were known to the suspect and each said they were children at the time of the alleged assaults.

Const. Rob Carver said all three victims were in and around the age of 10 when the alleged assaults happened. He said they occurred from the mid-1980s to the early 1990s.

Carver said there were both male and female victims.

On Feb. 24, 2022, police arrested Joseph Floyd Delaney, 65, of Lundar, Man.

He has been charged with three counts of sexual assault, two counts of sexual interference, two counts of invitation to sexual touching, assault and gross indecency.

Police said Delaney has been released on bail. The charges have not been proven in court.

Investigators added that Delaney was part of a church group, specifically a theatre production in the church, in southwest Winnipeg when the alleged assaults happened and if anyone has more information or wants to talk with police, they can call 204-986-3296 or Crime Stoppers at 204-786-8477.

Carver noted in historical sexual assault cases like this there is a chance more victims are out there.

"When I speak to investigators in cases like this….That often there are more victims that have been identified by investigators. Could that be the case here? Absolutely, certainly, it could," said Carver.

He added these victims were all connected through the theatre production, but it wasn't the main connection point, saying the connections are multifaceted and police don't want to limit it to the theatre production if there are other victims out there.