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Kamloops man found guilty of sexually touching teenage boy

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KAMLOOPS - A Kamloops man who met a teenage boy over a dating app before engaging in sexual activity with him has been found guilty of touching a person under the age of 16.

Gardian Angel, who is in his 50s, "hooked up" with the victim in July 2016 after meeting on the app Grindr, which is a location-based dating app for gay men, Supreme Court Justice Len Marchand said in his written decision today, May 11.

Court heard the victim, a 14-year-old boy, lied about his age on Grindr, and indicated he was 18 years old. The victim cannot be named due to a court-ordered publication ban which protects the identity of victims in sexual offence cases.

Once the teenager and Angel began talking, they added each other on Facebook, and that's when Angel saw that the boy's age was 16 years old on that profile.

Court heard Angel confronted the victim about it, and the teenager said he was in fact 16 years old.

Shortly after the two began talking, Marchand says they arranged to meet, agreeing that Angel would pick the teenager up from a convenience store in Kamloops's Upper Sahali neighbourhood. From there, it was just a short drive to Angel's Aberdeen condo.

Angel has been in a committed relationship with his partner for 14 years, Marchand said.

Marchand said the victim testified during trial that they returned to Angel's home, engaged in sexual intercourse, and a short time later the victim left. But Angel told a different story, saying he was only on Grindr to find models for his photography.

He testified that when the pair got to his home, he gave the 14-year-old a tour and ended in the bedroom to show him the "fantastic view", and when he turned around the victim dropped his pants and grabbed Angel by the groin.

"I do not believe Mr. Angel took (the victim) into his bedroom to show him the view," Marchand said.

Angel testified that he smacked the victim away and said "fuck off, faggot," which is what caused the teenager to leave.

But the victim testified that after they had sex, he left the condo. The next day, the two spoke again on Grindr and part of the conversation was read in court. The victim told Angel "I'm good haha" and that he was sorry, Angel was a very nice guy, but the teenager regrets what they did because he felt Angel was too old for him.

Angel then scolded the victim, calling him immature, telling him age is just a number, and that the victim had a bad attitude.

The victim ended the conversation by saying, "Go fuck yourself, pedophile."

According to the victim's testimony, he was angry that Angel took a condescending attitude with him, and hated Angel after that exchange.

Marchand said it was not believable that Angel used Grindr primarily for finding models, especially since he had found little success with finding models over the past five to six years.

He added that Angel's story that they did not have a sexual encounter had holes in it and was unbelievable. Angel also testified that he had asked several questions relating to the victim's age in the short drive from the convenience store to Angel's condo, which Marchand said also wasn't believable.

Marchand ruled that he believed the victim's testimony of what really happened that day, and that Angel did not take reasonable steps to ensure the victim's age, even though he knew the boy had lied about it before. Marchand said a reasonable person would have taken significant steps to ensure the victim's age after that.

Angel and the boy had also exchanged sexually explicit pictures, and court heard that the victim had the body of a slim, young, hairless teenage boy, which could have raised a red flag about his age.

Angel was found guilty of one count of sexual interference of a person under 16. A date for his sentencing has not yet been set.


To contact a reporter for this story, email Ashley Legassic or call 250-319-7494 or email the editor. You can also submit photos, videos or news tips to the newsroom and be entered to win a monthly prize draw.

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