The Montreal Alouettes say full-back Christophe Normand has been suspended pending the outcome of a tantalizing investigation.
Normand, a former teacher, faces two charges of luring a child under 18, including a charge of luring a child under 16 or making the defendant believe he was under 16 at the time of the offence.
The crimes are said to have taken place on August 9, 2022.
Provincial Police Sgt. Audrey-Anne Bilodeau said both offenses involved a single victim.
“To respect everyone involved, we will await the end of the investigation,” Alouettes President Mario Cecchini said in a press release. “Christophe is suspended with immediate effect until further notice.”
Patricia Johnson, a spokeswoman for Quebec prosecutors, said Normand, 30, was arrested by Quebec provincial police on Thursday.
The arrest came after police searched his home on August 19.
Normand appeared in court in Granby, Que. on Thursday afternoon and was conditionally released.
There is no evidence Normand met the alleged victim after attempting to bait her, Bilodeau said, adding that investigators “confirmed that there were no other events involving the victim and the defendants would have been together except last year at school.”
Normand has been working as a school teacher in the off-season since 2015.
According to the Montreal Alouettes website, two years ago he began teaching social studies at Monseigneur-Euclide-Theberge High School, his alma mater, in Marieville, Que.
Bilodeau said the investigation identified only one victim, but police are asking members of the public who have information about the alleged events or other possible victims to come forward.
Normand is a seven-year veteran in the CFL and is currently in his third season with Montreal.
More to come.