Arrest warrant issued for man charged with sexual assault

A warrant has been issued for the arrest of a man facing a charge of sexual assault with a weapon after he failed to appear in court last week.

Vernon Brett Faithful, 23, is described as a First Nations man, 180 cm (5'11") tall, weighing 91 kg (201 lbs) with short hair and brown eyes.

He was supposed to appear for a pretrial conference at the Prince George courthouse on Feb. 16 in advance of a B.C. Supreme Court that was scheduled to begin on Monday.

It's not the first time Faithful has gone missing. In October a warrant was issued after a similar instance and he was eventually arrested in Edmonton in February. Faithful was subsequently placed in custody but released a few months later on conditions.

Faithful was first arrested on July 16, 2013, a day after police were called to a 1900-block Upland Street apartment where a woman alleged she awoke to find a man in her bedroom with a knife.

She said he fled after she put up a fight. The woman was taken to hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

Faithful faces six charges in relation to the original incident and a charge of breach of conditions from failing to appear in court in October.