This story contains details that some readers may find disturbing.
A man with a history of sexual offences faces another nine months behind bars followed by 10 years of supervision after admitting to online child luring.
Danny Depew, 59, pleaded guilty to two charges and was sentenced Wednesday by Judge Rob Brown in Castlegar Provincial Court.
Brown designated Depew a long-term offender and gave him four years in prison for the internet luring of a child under 16 and another four years for making sexually explicit material available to someone under 16. The sentences will be served concurrently.
Crown counsel had sought six years on each count, while the defence asked for time served. Depew was given time-and-a-half credit for the 792 days he has already spent in custody, the equivalent of 1,188 days. That means he has 272 days left to serve.
Brown agreed with a joint submission from Crown and defence that Depew be put on long-term supervision for 10 years once he is released.
The offences occurred in Castlegar in August 2024. However, there was no actual underage victim.
In describing the circumstances of the offence, Brown said a man from Kentucky created a website after friends told him that he could “mess with pedophiles.”
The man portrayed himself as a 14-year-old girl and communicated with Depew. The conversation soon moved to text messaging. Over three days, Depew sent the man nude photos and videos of himself.
The man then contacted Castlegar RCMP and provided copies of the messages he had received, including graphic detail of sexual acts that Depew said he would perform on the person he believed to be a teenage girl.
Previous offences
Depew told a doctor who prepared a psychological assessment that he had been sexually abused as a child and teenager by his aunt and uncle.
He has been a long-haul truck driver for most of his life and at the time of his arrest was doing that job in Castlegar and living his truck.
In addition to earlier convictions for break and enter, assault, causing a disturbance, and dangerous driving, in 2005 he was sentenced to six years in prison for sexual assault and 3½ years for sexual exploitation of a person with a disability.
In 2014, he was convicted of accessing child pornography and sentenced to 11½ months in jail. In 2020, he received a further three years for child luring and 540 days for failing to comply with a probation order.
The latter case was similar to the current one. Depew made sexually explicit comments to someone in an online chat room and sent a video of himself engaging in sexual acts. But the person he was talking to was actually an RCMP officer.
Depew’s prison records indicated he regularly reported sexual urges toward children. A doctor said he is a high risk to harm the public without strict conditions and noted the August 2024 offences occurred after he stopped taking pharmaceutical drugs.
A forensic psychiatrist’s report said Depew has multiple sexual disorders and added that the gratification he derives from his behaviour “is the ability to exert power and control over others.”
In addition to taking medication, Depew has completed extensive psychological treatment. Staff at the clinic where he was treated “got the impression he understood the materials, participated well, and appeared motivated to change his offending behavior,” Brown said.
However, that was before the offences for which he was sentenced this week.
Aggravating and mitigating factors
Brown cited a previous court ruling that found that while the absence of an actual victim is relevant, it should not be overemphasized in sentencing, because the accused can take no credit for it, and therefore it doesn’t diminish their responsibility.
As aggravating factors, Brown cited the fact that Depew thought he was communicating with a teenage girl, that he was on probation at the time, and that he has a record of related offences.
Brown said mitigating factors were Depew’s guilty plea, his co-operation with authorities, and the treatment he has taken while in custody.
In addition to the jail time and supervision, Depew was banned from having weapons, ordered to provide a DNA sample, and will be placed on the national sex offender registry. He is restricted from going places where kids might be and restricted from using the internet.
Depew, who has a long white beard, appeared by video from prison in a red uniform. He wasn’t given a chance to speak before sentencing.
