Jacob Hoggard is facing multiple sexual assault charges. He’s also now a married man. The Hedley front man married actor Rebekah Asselstine on New Year’s Eve in Vancouver, according to reports. Photos and videos shared on social media by guests of the event (mostly now deleted or made private, but you can see them here) reveal details of the wedding, like the couple dancing to Audrey Hepburn’s “Moon River” and Hoggard serenading his new wife at a piano.
Hoggard, 34, and Asseltine, 28, wed at downtown Vancouver’s swanky Terminal City Club’s Metropolitan Ballroom, according to the Vancouver Sun, surrounded by friends and family just months before Hoggard faces his pending charges in court. Hoggard and Asseltine have yet to publicly confirm the nuptials but the couple posed for pictures outside the venue in a white dress and tux with their dog.
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Hoggard has been charged with one count of sexual interference and two counts of sexual assault causing bodily harm related to three separate incidents with a woman and a girl under 16, which allegedly occurred in 2016. Last year, two women accused Hoggard of rape while other women and minors came forward with their own stories of alleged sexual assault by Hoggard and his band through the hashtag #outHedley2k18. Hoggard’s preliminary hearing is set for July, but the date of the hearing will officially be confirmed in May. In case you missed it, here’s our refresher on the case.
It’s unclear whether Hoggard’s Hedley bandmates were in attendance at the wedding. The band has been on indefinite hiatus since allegations of Hoggard’s sexual misconduct surfaced last February.
As we reported back in November, many of Hedley’s fans are sticking by the front man, tweeting messages of support. Since the news of Hoggard’s wedding, Hedley fans have expressed similar sentiments online.
@JacobHoggard this was the best New Years gift I could get pic.twitter.com/SVqb779ikG
— Katie-Lynn Poliquin (@PoliquinLynn) January 1, 2019
Simply cannot congratulate @jacobhoggard enough. I’m so happy you found your other half. And that she’s chosen to stick by your side. I wish you both a life time of happiness ❤️ #cantcontaintheexcitement
— Mandy (@JohnnyxxFallsxx) January 1, 2019
Others were less enthused.
Hoggard has denied the accusations of rape and assault but admitted to “reckless and dismissive” behaviour and to “behav[ing] in a way that objectified women” in a Twitter post.