Dangerous-offender hearing for violent sex offender set for new year

A man who pleaded guilty earlier this year to a violent sexual assault in Halifax and has a history of similar attacks will face a 10-day dangerous-offender hearing in the new year.

The Crown is seeking to have Sem Paul Obed declared a dangerous offender and locked up indefinitely.

The case was in Nova Scotia Supreme Court Wednesday to set dates for the dangerous-offender hearing. It is scheduled to begin on Feb. 16 and run for four days, with another block of time set aside in April.

Obed pleaded guilty back in January to an attack that happened in central Halifax in June 2018.

According to information provided during the hearing where Obed entered his plea, the victim was sleeping when he appeared in her bedroom. He was dressed only in a ball cap and basketball shoes. The woman attempted to fight him off but he overpowered her.

During that time, Obed punched the victim multiple times and dragged her from room to room by her hair.

When he left, he told the victim she could call him, and said: "If you call the cops I'm going to find you."

The victim suffered 22 wounds to her body. 

When police arrested Obed that afternoon, the victim's blood was still on his face.

When he was released from prison in 2014 for previous offences, police warned the public that he was relocating to Halifax and was a high risk to reoffend.

At the time, he had more than 30 convictions for crimes such as attempted murder, sexual assault and assault with a weapon.