a saskatoon acupuncturist convicted of sexually assaulting a patient during an acupressure treatment will serve his one-year jail sentence in the community, then spend another year on probation.
judge vanessa monar enweani agreed with the defence that a conditional sentence — jail time served under conditions in the community — can satisfy the sentencing principles of denunciation and deterrence, considering dr. musa andkhoie’s health risks if we were to be jailed.
andkhoie, 80, was sentenced after a provincial court trial in 2021.
the victim testified that andkhoie applied appropriate pressure during an initial treatment, but touched their genital region, both underneath and over top of their clothing, without consent during a second treatment days later in september 2019.
acupressure uses fingers to apply pressure to parts of the body while acupuncture uses needles.
only the victim and andkhoie were in the room during the assault, court heard. the victim contacted family members and police immediately after.
at trial, andkhoie said the patient was lying and had consented to any touching he did, which he said he would have documented in his chart.
monar enweani found the victim to be credible and reliable based on their detailed recollection, anatomical description and clear timeline of both the assault and the surrounding events, crown prosecutor aaron martens said.