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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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Zhixiang 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.( A2 k* h3 ]8 y" ]3 o
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His 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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4 J8 A* U1 f/ B/ m7 K7 |The same victim, a girl under the age of 16, is listed in both cases.; I' ]2 a% a0 U7 N* A
1 s" N5 M1 U& BBoth 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.9 R; G8 L6 f( G; C9 i9 p' }
" S5 ^6 u! v) [* f$ m: wWang, 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.* y! e8 { k) M; t9 R8 k
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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.
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' [# x! q' B9 m$ X8 z* d# q2 ^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.8 M" E0 U. G1 c" c- K
4 C- R# d- C1 K: L DHe 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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; e$ t( _8 |9 u: X2 I! P8 EWang’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.( l4 H: q7 Y: S5 I9 E% J/ w: w
5 Z5 g/ H5 N5 CU of A spokesman Bryan Alary confirmed in an email that both Wang and Chen are university employees currently on leave.
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5 t. |& g. J" ^' I3 U; w9 TThe 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.
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, N! i: J7 n- b* }Both Chen and Wang made their first appearance in Edmonton court on Feb. 14 and were released on bail." t. A- B3 a/ o! w4 o. E, D
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Their next court appearance is scheduled for March 13.
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