Woman's 'heart was pounding' in terror as Stronach groped her in Toronto condo, court hears

< warm>WARNING: This story references sexual assault allegations and < warm>may move those who feature experienced​ ​​​sexual violence or know someone affected by it.

A woman said her “heart was pounding” in terror as Frank Stronach groped her in a Toronto condominium decades ago, court heard at the sexual assault trial of the Canadian businessman on Tuesday.

“I was terrified,” said the woman, who got emotional at times during her testimony. “I didn’t think he was going to hurt me physically, but I thought he was trying to have sex with me.”

Under questioning by assistant Crown attorney Julia Bellehumeur,  the woman testified that her back was against the wall in the condo as Stronach moved his hands up and down over her body, touching her breasts and lips.

She said that she could hardly talk or hear “because my heart was pounding.”

The woman said she had made it clear to Stronach that she didn’t want any intimate contact with him, and eventually she was able to leave.

The woman is the second complainant to testify at the judge-alone trial being overseen by Superior Court Justice Anne Molloy.

Stronach, 93, founder of auto-parts giant Magna International, faces a total of 12 charges, including sexual assault and forcible confinement. Two of the counts, rape and attempted rape, are considered historical charges as they were abolished when the Criminal Code was amended in 1983 to create the offence of sexual assault.

The allegations by the seven women in Toronto span the period between 1977 and 1990, with one specified as having happened in suburban Scarborough.

Stronach is also set to face a separate trial in Newmarket, Ont., later this year after the case was split into two proceedings.

On Tuesday, one of the complainants testified that she had worked in the 1980s as a waitress at Rooney’s, a restaurant Stronach had owned.

She said that one night when she went into work, she was told she was fired. The woman said she later called the head office of Magna International to learn the reasoning for her dismissal.

She said she later got a call from Stronach who said he would look into it. Stronach contacted her again, said that he had information about her firing, and arranged with her to have dinner at a restaurant.

The woman said they met for dinner and during the dinner she felt like Stronach was a "fatherly mentor" who was trying to get an answer for her as to why she was fired.

"He seemed to genuinely care," she said, adding that he was polite and respectful during the dinner.

She testified that Stronach told her that she had been fired for selling drugs, something she denied.

The woman said that Stronach asked her during the dinner to go back to his condo, which she agreed to do but felt “uncomfortable” about going. 

Once inside his condo, the woman said she became fearful, and that her heart began pounding.

"As a woman it was just a vibe that made me very uncomfortable," she said. "I didn't want to be there."

She said she thanked him for dinner and was near the door to make her way out of the condo, when Stronach began helping her with her coat. But then he got very close to her, and his hands began touching her body as her back was against the wall, the woman told court.

"He was trying to be intimate ... He was groping me," she said.

Asked by Bellehumeur if she wanted any physical or sexual contact with him, the woman said "no, absolutely not."

She said she was "absolutely convinced" that she made it clear to Stronach that that was not her intention.

The woman said Stronach eventually backed off and she left the condo.

She said that she was contacted by an employee at Magna International weeks later to come in to the head office for a job interview. She said she ended up working there for a number of years.

The woman said that while she was there, she would regularly cross paths with Stonach, but that he was always polite, and the alleged attack was never discussed.

In 2024, the woman said she contacted police about the alleged assault after watching the news one night. She said the news program featured a story about Stronach being charged for sexual assault, and that Stronach had denied the charges, calling the women 'liars.'

The woman is now being cross-examined by Stronach's lawyer Leora Shemesh.

Senior Reporter

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