North

Yellowknife man allegedly groped woman outside gas station

A Yellowknife man has been charged with sexual assault for allegedly groping a woman outside Mac's gas station after asking for a cigarette Friday

Frank James Mannilaq, 41, allegedly groped the victim while asking for a cigarette

Yellowknife RCMP have charged a 41-year-old man with sexual assault following a Friday incident outside Mac's gas station. (Sara Minogue/CBC)

RCMP say a  man has been charged with sexual assault after allegedly groping a woman at the Mac's gas station in Yellowknife.

Yellowknife RCMP say the assault happened when 41-year-old Frank James Mannilaq tried to enter the woman's vehicle after asking for a cigarette.

Mannilaq was arrested and charged at the gas station just after 5:00 p.m. on Friday.

According to a transcript of his last sentencing, he has a lengthy criminal record that includes five previous convictions for sexual offences.

In 2012 he was sentenced to almost three years in jail for a drunken attack on a woman at a motel in the city.

According to the transcript, Mannilaq has been diagnosed with schizophrenia.

He has committed most of his crimes while intoxicated and has been living on the streets of Yellowknife for years.

In January the RCMP gave him a 200-dollar ticket for having open liquor in a public place. A justice of the peace dismissed the charge.

Mannilaq will make his first appearance in Yellowknife court today.