Mom, ex-boyfriend both testify for Crown in sex assault trial

After two days of testimony and cross examination, Crown Lawyer Lisa Weich called the 19-year-old woman’s mother to the stand to describe personal experiences and knowledge of the interaction between her daughter and the accused.

The mother began by describing the time when the family lived in the small, rural town, and how her daughter met the accused. She told the court her daughter loved to rollerblade and was asked by the elderly man to volunteer at the local recreational/civic centre and help at the concession.

She talked about how, in her opinion, the accused seem to always stay unusually close to her daughter, who was only 13/14 years old at the time. During one incident, the mother testified she saw the 75-year-old man lean into her daughter’s breast area to reach for an object on the opposite side of the young girl and thought it was inappropriate.

Often, she said, the elderly man would stop at their home to offer the young girl rides to the civic centre, however after the incident described prior, the mom said she was not comfortable with him doing so, and told him she would take her daughter to the centre instead. Still, the mother said, the elderly man would continue to come to their home to talk about his military experience, the guns he owned, and people he had allegedly killed during his time in the military.

Never once was he invited to come to the home, or did he call before he showed up, testified the mother. Eventually, contact with the older man was cut off at the mother’s insistence, and things were quiet for a few years.

When asked by the Crown whether the mother ever told the accused not to come to their door any more, she said she did not, because she wasn’t sure if she had been reading too much into the man’s interest in the young girl.

By January 2017, the young girl was 17 and had been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. The family moved to the Calgary area for several months for treatment, and the teenager became depressed, said the mother. The girl was on new medication and had also been denied entry into a college program she had been looking forward to.

Not long after the family came back to the small town, the mother told the court the accused offered her a job at a local campground, but the mother refused to allow it at first. However, the mother ended up giving her permission, after speaking with the accused to find out what her daughter’s job description, pay and work days would be.

While working for the 75-year-old, the court heard that the daughter became more depressed and wanted her own space. The family had a trailer the girl could stay in, and surrounding areas were considered, but were not practical, because the girl did not drive. A decision was made to put the trailer in the local campground where the girl worked.

The mother told the court, that while at the campground, the accused was always nearby, told the teen she had to work when days were booked off, always wanted to know where she was, and was always checking on her.

Some days, the mother said, she would bring groceries to her daughter, or take her home either for lunch, or to pick up personal items. Not long after, she said the elderly man would come to the parent’s home, looking for the young girl, he would drive along the street where they lived and park a short distance away, or he would circle the block.

The mother also believed the accused appeared to become irate and upset when a friend of her daughter’s came to visit the girl at the campground from the Calgary area one weekend, telling the court that the man told her he didn’t believe her daughter really wanted to work.

A boyfriend of the now 19-year-old also testified earlier in the day he had stayed one night in the trailer at the campground with the teen, early one morning the accused came knocking on the door before the sun came up and said “I know he’s in there. Get out.” The boyfriend left a few minutes later.

Although the former boyfriend said he didn’t see the elderly man, he said he recognized him by his distinct voice and accent.

Again, the mother was asked whether she put a stop to the unsolicited visits and told the court she did not. After 8-9 days of living at the campground, the 17-year-old moved back home.

On Monday, the alleged victim testified that not long after she moved back home, water pipes exploded in her trailer, and she then went to police.

The Crown is expected to call five witnesses Wednesday, while the accused is scheduled to testify for the Defense on Thursday, May 2.

by Lara Fominoff

Mom, ex-boyfriend both testify for Crown in sex assault trial

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