SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - A man charged with two counts of sexual assault on children will face a preliminary inquiry in June relating to one of the charges.

Registered sex offender Bobby Kudlak, 35, requested the preliminary inquiry Wednesday – to determine whether there is enough evidence for a trial – in relation to a charge of sexual assault. The charge, dating back to 2005, involves a girl who is now 15 years old.

Asked why the alleged incident from 2005 is only coming up now, Crown prosecutor Janice Walsh said people sometimes come forward right away, and sometimes it takes longer.

"There's a lot of different reasons why they don't disclose right away," she said.

It's expected the June 30 inquiry will take three hours at most to complete, Walsh told Judge Bernadette Schmaltz.

Kudlak is also charged with groping a young girl at the Yellowknife Public Library on June 16, 2009. The charge was laid shortly after he was released from jail, where he served eight months for sexual assault on a girl under the age of 12 at Wal-Mart.

Kudlak has been in custody for close to nine months since his arrest in June. Walsh said the 2009 charge is being moved to NWT Supreme Court and will be prosecuted by indictment, which entails a longer sentence if there is a conviction. The decision in Supreme Court will resolve whether Kudlak is to be designated a dangerous offender.

The 2009 charge won't be dealt with until the preliminary inquiry into the 2005 matter is completed.