First day of MacIntosh sex trial wraps

The sex abuse trial of a formerNova Scotiabusinessman began Monday in Nova Scotia Supreme Court.

Ernest Fenwick MacIntosh, 67,faces 36 charges, including indecent assault and gross indecency, involving six boys in eastern Nova Scotia between 1970 and 1977.

The first witness, a 48-year-old Guysborough County man, told the court in Port Hawkesbury that MacIntosh would regularly get him alone and sexually abuse him when he was young.

The man said when he was about 10 years old, MacIntosh became a family friend. He said that roughhousing and tickling eventually turned into fondling. The man, whose identity is protected by court order, said that MacIntosh would routinely perform oral sex on him.

He estimated that MacIntosh abused him about 100 times. Most of the incidents happened in MacIntosh's car while parked in remote areas.

The man said he believes he was 11 or 12 years old at the time. He said he would often close his eyes and pretendto be asleep during the assaults, and try to go somewhere else in his mind.

Eight days have been set aside for the trial.

MacIntosh faces 36 charges, but only 26 are being dealt with in this trial. Two separate trials are being held, because the complaints have been divided into two groups of three. In this case, two more men will testify Tuesday.

"That's not an uncommon procedure when we have a large number of complainants and a large number of charges," said Crown prosecutor Diane McGrath. "It breaks it down into a little more manageable amounts and prevents you from having an exceptionally long trial."

MacIntosh's trial was set to begin in April, but was postponed when his lawyer fell ill.

The first charges against him were laid in 1995, but MacIntosh wasn't arrested until 12 years later, because he had moved to India a year before the first charge was laid.

MacIntosh was arrested in April 2007 near New Delhi, where he worked as a telecommunications specialist for 13 years. He was extradited to Canada two months later.

He was released from custody in April 2008 on $60,000 bail. He's been living in the Halifax region ever since, under court-imposed conditions.

No decision has been made on whether MacIntosh will testify, defence lawyers said.

"The decision hasn't been made yet, butMr. MacIntosh has wanted to tell his side of the story for a long time, and this has been his first opportunity, so I anticipate that's what we'll do," said Brian Casey.