Burnaby man charged with four counts of sexual assault after allegedly groping teens, caseworker

BURNABY (NEWS 1130) – A 29-year-old Burnaby man named Jorge Bernal has been charged with four counts of sexual assault in a string of groping incidents, including two that happened after he was arrested.

Mounties say the first incident occurred in April after a teenage girl reported she had been groped from behind by a man on Hastings Street in North Burnaby. The victims reported a man running up to her, grabbing her buttocks and then attempting to talk to her before running from the area.

This was followed by another report in May, where a teenage girl reported that a man had grabbed her buttocks as she was walking on the street. The suspect tried to talk to her and then ran away from the area, in a similar case as previously reported. Investigators who gathered CCTV footage of the incident were able to determine the suspect was the same man in both of the groping cases.

Officers say the suspect was arrested at a Burnaby home in August after investigators were able to trace the suspect’s movements.

But Mounties now allege Bernal inappropriately touched two other women after he was released on conditions.

He allegedly inappropriately touched a caseworker in September and then groped a community support worker who was helping him find accommodation last month.

Bernal is now facing four counts of sexual assault and is out on bail.

He must follow 22 conditions to his release, which include no contact with anyone under the age of 16, not to travel on any public bus and to be of good behaviour.

Bernal will appear in court in January.