Suspended N.S. Mountie faces additional sexual assault charge

A Nova Scotia RCMP officer already charged with multiple counts of sexual assault is now facing another charge of committing the same offence.

Const. William McNutt, 40, became an RCMP officer in 2021.

McNutt was suspended from duty with East Hants District RCMP in January 2024 when RCMP first contacted the province's police watchdog, the Serious Incident Response Team, about allegations against the officer. A woman alleged she had been sexually assaulted in 2023 while McNutt was off-duty.

He was subsequently charged with several offences, including three counts of sexual assault. 

In November 2024, McNutt was charged for a second time with two more counts of sexual assault after a woman came forward about an incident in 2019. Police said McNutt had met the woman a few weeks earlier through mutual friends. 

Last week, SIRT said McNutt was charged a third time, in relation to an alleged sexual assault in May 2024. 

On Wednesday, SIRT said it was charging McNutt with a new count of sexual assault connected to an incident alleged to have happened in January 2023. 

SIRT said McNutt and each of the complainants were "known to each other," but it declined to provide any details.

Dennis Daley, commanding officer of the Nova Scotia RCMP, said the criminal charges against McNutt are "extremely alarming and distressing, and this additional charge is even more so."

"I take all allegations of misconduct very seriously, and the Nova Scotia RCMP is continuing to cooperate fully with SIRT. An internal code of conduct process is also under way," Daley said in a statement.

In an interview with CBC News, Daley said McNutt has been suspended without pay. If he is convicted and sentenced to jail time, he will automatically lose his status as an RCMP officer, Daley said. 

McNutt has pleaded not guilty to at least two of the charges, and the other cases are still before the courts.

Daley said McNutt likely passed the RCMP vetting process to become an officer because the force was unaware of the allegations against him until last year.

"Sometimes unfortunately it happens because, for instance, the survivor doesn't come forward and there's no information at that particular time to indicate that this person should not be hired," he said.

Daley said there is a process within the RCMP to determine whether McNutt will ever be able to return to his job, even if he is found not guilty. 

"He has to get a fair hearing in the criminal courts and then on our internal side he has to get a fair hearing," Daley said. 

"But I will do my utmost to get him out of the RCMP, certainly, if he's convicted."