Four-and-a-half years in jail for a 53-year-old man who sexually exploited a teenage girl in his care.
That was the sentence Judge David Simpkin announced March 9 in Prince George Provincial Court.
Simpkin said mitigating factors weighed against a longer sentence.
In October, the man pleaded guilty to touching a young person for a sexual purpose and sexual interference of a person under 16. He had also been charged with sexual assault and assault by choking.
The names and identifying details of the guilty man and the victim are covered under a publication ban.
During a November hearing, Crown prosecutor Kristina King asked Simpkin for an eight-year sentence. Defence lawyer Wade Jenson proposed two years less a day plus probation.
Simpkin said the victim trusted the offender and he breached that trust “in the most egregious way.”
“She was taken advantage of and sexually abused by the man who was supposed to take care of her, I find that to be significantly aggravating,” Simpkin said. “I found that the sexual abuse extended over a period of months, included penetrative, unprotected sex.”
The man worked on a farm in a Robson Valley community but also had a residence in Alberta and met the girl through a religious organization. The offences occurred between July 1, 2022 and June 19, 2023 in BC and June 1, 2023 and May 31, 2024 in Alberta.
During the latter period, the man took the victim to his house and they had sexual intercourse while his wife was out of town.
Simpkin said there were clear elements of planning and grooming involved in the perpetrator’s behaviour and he exposed the girl to the risk of pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases.
Simpkin said the sentence must denounce his inexcusable conduct, but must not forget the goal of rehabilitation.
Simpkin banned the man from possessing firearms for 10 years after his prison sentence, he is not allowed for 10 years to attend a public place where those under 16 are likely to be present, such as a park or swimming pool and must provide a DNA sample.
He will also be listed for 20 years on the national sex offender registry.
In November, the man said he deeply regretted the betrayal to his own family and the selfishness he displayed in “compromising the innocence of someone.”
“My actions deviate significantly from the beautiful example of how Jesus instructs us to live,” he said.
A pre-sentencing report said he has undergone counselling but is considered a low-to-moderate risk to reoffend. The report also said that he had been sexually abused as a child by a family member and that he had a moderate cognitive deficit.
