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CTV News
06-06-2025
- CTV News
Vancouver bar owner gets 1 year in jail for sexually assaulting patron
The Brickhouse on Main Street is seen in this Google Maps screenshot. Warning: This story includes graphic details of sexual assault. The owner of a dive bar in Vancouver's Chinatown who was found guilty of sexually assaulting a young patron has been handed a 12-month jail sentence. Chih Hwa Leo Chow, proprietor of the Brickhouse, must also give a DNA sample and register as a sex offender for 10 years for the crime that occurred in the early hours of Sept. 16, 2022. Chow was convicted last December after a judge-only trial and his sentence was handed down on May 16 in Vancouver Provincial Court. The victim, referred to as M.D., visited the Brickhouse with her mother, N.D., the night of the assault. The mother knew the owner, but the daughter did not. At the time, Chow was 65 years old, and the victim was 21. Chow closed the bar to socialize with the mother and daughter, and served them 'several' alcoholic drinks, the court heard. The mother testified her memory of the events are fuzzy because she was 'blacking out.' The victim also became ill and vomited a number of times during the incident. The bar owner first tried to kiss the mother, but she declined his advances, before he turned his attention to the daughter, according to the judgment. 'On one occasion (M.D.) vomited on the accused. Notwithstanding her obvious physical distress, the accused testified the complainant actively engaged in sexual activity with him. He described the complainant as the 'instigator.' She denied consenting to any sexual activity,' said Judge Gregory Rideout. The judge found Chow was in fact the instigator, calling his testimony of the events 'bizarre.' The victim, who identifies as a lesbian, testified she did not consent and that she wouldn't have consented to sexual activity with a strange man several years her senior. 'It was absurd to believe the complainant, a timid 21-year-old gay female, would have any sexual interest in the accused,' Rideout said. The court heard that over the course of about two hours in several locations around the bar, Chow put his hands over and under the victim's clothes, touched her breasts, exposed his penis, and forcibly digitally penetrated her vagina. 'The accused felt he was betrayed by the complainant when she admitted that she was a lesbian even though he had treated her, in his opinion, very properly throughout the evening,' Rideout continued. 'I found the only 'betrayal' committed that evening at the Brickhouse was the accused's violation of the physical integrity and sexual autonomy of the complainant. By no standard was she ever treated 'properly' by the accused.' During sentencing, the judge noted the victim remains physically and emotionally traumatized by what Chow did to her that night. The Crown suggested between 15 and 18 months in jail, and the accused submitted 18 months of house arrest followed by 36 months of probation. Mitigating circumstances Rideout considered included Chow's lack of a criminal record and character reference letters that spoke to his reputation. The judge listed far more aggravating circumstances. They included the fact that the victim was a complete stranger to the accused; Chow betrayed his friendship with the victim's mother by sexually assaulting her daughter while she was blacked out; and the significant age gap. Rideout also noted that when M.D. regurgitated on him, Chow 'did not consider that circumstance to be relevant on the issue of consent,' and emphasized that the sexual assaults took place over a lengthy period of time. 'The accused's digital penetration of the complainant's vagina was particularly alarming. This was not a fleeting momentary penetration. He admitted to the police, in a statement tendered at trial, that he penetrated her vagina for 10 to 15 seconds. He described his mindset at the time was to: 'see the boundary,'' the judge said. 'As a result of his reckless actions and willful conduct, he violated the physical integrity and sexual autonomy of the complainant.' Rideout ruled Chow's moral blameworthiness at the higher end of the spectrum and found a conditional sentence order would not meet the principles of deterrence and denunciation. Without explaining why he decided on a shorter sentence than proposed by the Crown, Rideout imposed 12 months in a provincial correctional facility, deeming it 'just, fit and proportionate.' The decision notes that the Brickhouse's liquor licence has been revoked, but Chow is seeking to reinstate it and pass it on to a new owner, claiming 'his days with the Brickhouse are over.'
CBC
17-05-2025
- CBC
Vancouver bar owner convicted of sexual assault fails to get liquor licence back
Social Sharing WARNING: This story contains details of sexual assault. A Vancouver bar owner convicted of sexually assaulting a woman at his business has failed to get his liquor licence back. This week, the general manager of B.C.'s Liquor and Cannabis Regulation Branch said Chih Hwa Leo Chow, the owner of the Brickhouse Late Nite Bistro and Bar, has proven "that his character renders him an unfit and improper" liquor licence holder. "It would be an abdication of the General Manager's duty to protect the public if he were to allow the licence to persist," the branch said in its response to Chow's court petition. Chow, 68, was convicted last year of sexually assaulting a 21-year-old woman who had stopped by his bar in 2022. Court heard that Chow penetrated the woman with his fingers without consent and forced her to touch his penis. Chow said he has retained lawyers to appeal his conviction, according to his petition. Chow is currently facing charges of sexual assault, unlawful confinement or imprisonment and administering a noxious substance to a person in relation to an offence that allegedly happened in January 2024. None of the allegations have been tested in court. Chow is not in custody and is due in court on May 20 in relation to those charges. Chow's lawyer did not respond to a request for comment from CBC News. 'Not fit' to hold licence Chow's liquor licence was cancelled effective May 2 because of the sexual assault conviction and because the liquor branch determined he was "not fit" to hold a liquor licence. Chow argued that prior to the criminal matter, he and his bar "enjoyed an unblemished record of compliance with provincial liquor laws" for more than 30 years. Chow said he has not returned to the bar since February 2024 and that his business has continued to operate responsibly under separate management. He said he doesn't intend to return to the business in any operational capacity. He had asked the Liquor and Cannabis Regulation Branch to consider transferring the liquor licence instead of cancelling it outright. Chow called the branch's refusal to do that "draconian" and claims it deprives him of his ability to sell his bar. "The safety of the public is not enhanced by denying Mr. Chow the ability to sell the Brickhouse and transfer the licence to a third party who is agreeable to the Branch," Chow argued in his petition. In its response, the branch said Chow's claim about not being able to sell his bar was "speculative" and that the decision to cancel the licence doesn't have any impact on Chow's assets, including his rights under the lease. The branch said if a new person takes over the bar, the branch will have to determine that they're a suitable licensee, regardless of whether they are transferred the liquor licence or apply for a new one.
