The owner of Redsea Riding is facing sexual assault charges against minors. It was just last week that the province announced the awarding of the first ride-sharing licence to Redsea Riding, but it turns out that licence was suspended the same day.

Yosief Tesfamicael is the owner of Redsea Riding and is facing a number of charges including sexual assault, sexual interference, invitation to sexual touching, unlawfully making sexually explicit material available to a child under 16, and exposing genital organs.

While the case is under review, the department has suspended the company’s licence until further notice. Yosief Tesfamicael has pleaded not guilty to all charges.

Earlier story:

The provincial government has suspended Redsea Riding’s license to operate a ride-sharing service in Newfoundland and Labrador.

“On Friday, new information was brought to the department’s attention potentially related to the licensee and the matter is under further review,” the province said in a statement. “In the meantime, the department has suspended the licence until further notice.”

The Department of Digital Government had cancelled a media availability last week, where they were set to discuss the first ride-sharing license being issued to Redsea. The Department said in a release on Friday, “Locally owned and operated by Yosief Tesfamicael, Redsea Riding currently employs 10 drivers and is actively recruiting more. The ride-sharing company is aiming to be open for business in the coming months.”

According to the province, an application has not been received from Uber or Lyft, but they are “hopeful that they will consider applying for a Transportation Network Company License.”