The sentencing hearing for a former Surrey massage therapist convicted on multiple counts of sexual assault is to take place this fall in B.C. Supreme Court in New Westminster.
B.C. Prosecution Service officials confirmed the proceedings for Leonard Krekic – who also has ties to both White Rock and Penticton – have been scheduled for Oct. 15-16, 2026, in front of Justice Lance Bernard.
Krekic was found guilty in May of 12 counts of sexual assault; a decision that followed a 35-day trial sparked by incidents alleged to have occurred at or near Surrey between Dec. 30, 1994 and April 25, 2017.
Publication bans are in effect regarding anything that could identify the victims/witnesses.
In July 2023, police in Surrey issued a news release announcing charges against the then-51-year-old in connection with allegations of sexual assaults that had occurred between December 2001 and April 2017. The release – describing Krekic as a White Rock resident and issued in a quest for additional information from the public – noted that Krekic had also practised in two Penticton clinics in 2018 and 2019.
The charges referenced in that release involved eight patients, and that during the time frame noted, Krekic was working at a clinic located in the 10300-block of 136A Street.
In December 2022, the College of Massage Therapists banned Krekic from the profession for 25 years and ordered him to pay more than $105,000 for sexual misconduct on the job, in connection with incidents alleged by six female patients to have occurred between 2012 and 2019.
The maximum sentence for sexual assault is 10 years in prison.