(JESSICA WALLACE / iNFOnews.ca)
December 21, 2013 - 11:26 AM
KAMLOOPS - One of the two men accused of having sex with two underage sisters has been found guilty. The other was acquitted.
The trial began in November for Tyson Coutlee and Raven Bebamikawe. Each faced one count of sexual interference of a person under 16.
The charges came after events on Oct. 13, 2011.
Crown prosecutor Bernie Caffaro alleged the two men, 21 and 23 at the time, had sex with the two girls — 13 and 15 at the time — after getting them drunk.
Caffarro said the girls' parents became aware of the incident but didn't report it to police out of fear of losing custody of their children. The allegations came to light when one of the girls confided in a school counsellor.
Coutlee has been found not guilty and Bebamikawe has been found guilty. Unlike judges, juries do not give reasons for verdicts. The jury heard Bebamikawe was found naked with the 15-year-old girl.
Bebamikawe is expected to be sentenced in the new year. The prosecutor said he will likely ask for a sentence of at least one year in prison.
To contact a reporter for this story, email: jwallace@infotelnews.ca, call: (250) 319-7494 or tweet: @jess__wallace.
News from © iNFOnews, 2013