Guy Lafleur's son pleads guilty to 14 charges
Last Updated: Tuesday, June 17, 2008 | 11:07 AM ET
CBC News
Mark Lafleur, left, pleaded guilty Tuesday to 14 criminal charges in Montreal. (Robert Skinner/Canadian Press)The son of Montreal Canadiens legend Guy Lafleur has pleaded guilty to 14 charges related to a troubled relationship he had with an underaged girl.
Mark Lafleur, 23, entered the pleas Tuesday morning at the Montreal courthouse, just as his assault trial was set to begin for alleged incidents involving a teenager that continued until 2007.
Lafleur pleaded guilty to 14 charges, including uttering death threats and forcible confinement, but pleaded not guilty to two related sexual assault charges.
His trial will proceed on those remaining counts, as well as a dangerous driving charge, said Isabelle Richer, Radio-Canada's legal affairs correspondent in Montreal.
The guilty plea will shorten Lafleur’s trial, which was initially expected to last for weeks, Richer said.
Last winter, Guy Lafleur was plunged into controversy when he was accused of offering contradictory testimony at his son's bail hearing.
He testified last October that his son was respecting a court-ordered curfew while in his parents' custody.
Drove son to hotels
But the Hall of Famer later admitted he drove his son to hotels to spend the night with his 16-year-old girlfriend.
Police issued an arrest warrant in January for the former Habs forward.
Guy Lafleur has since filed a lawsuit against Montreal police and Quebec's solicitor general for $3.5 million, stating the warrant tarnished his reputation.
Mark Lafleur’s victim was at the Montreal courthouse when he pleaded guilty Tuesday. She is scheduled to testify against him.
Lafleur will be sentenced at the end of his trial.
He still faces a possible jail term for breaking his bail conditions last fall.
According to information disclosed in court during earlier proceedings, the first alleged incident occurred in August 2005 in Montreal.
Other alleged incidents followed in Montreal and on Jan. 12, in Berthierville, about 70 kilometres north of Montreal.
With files from the Canadian Press
