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Date rapist left victims with ‘long-lasting, emotional scars,’ judge says

Klifford Kenyon of Abbotsford sentenced to additional two years in prison
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Klifford James Kenyon of Abbotsford has been sentenced for the sexual assaults of three women in 2015 and 2017.

An Abbotsford man has been sentenced to four years in jail for the sexual assaults of three women, who the judge says will carry “long-lasting, emotional scars” from the attacks.

Klifford James Kenyon, 28, was given almost two years’ credit for time already served, leaving him with another 25 months in prison.

Kenyon previously pleaded guilty to three counts of sexual assault and was sentenced in June in Abbotsford provincial court, but the judge’s written ruling was just recently posted online.

The assaults occurred in 2015 and 2017, and each involved consensual sexual activity at first, followed by non-consensual, according to the court documents.

The first offence took place in July 2015, when Kenyon, who was a delivery driver, went on his third date with a woman he had met online.

The second assault was in November of that year, with a different woman, also on their third date.

In both cases, the women began engaging in sexual activity with Kenyon, but when they asked him to stop, he wouldn’t, despite both women crying.

The third assault happened in March 2017 with a third woman, whom Kenyon also met online.

They also engaged in some sexual activity, but she said she did not want to go any further and told him several times to stop. Kenyon instead choked her and sexually assaulted her, the court documents state.

All three women presented victim impact statements to the court, stating that the assaults had left them with anxiety, panic attacks, depression, flashbacks and nightmares.

“It’s like he cut me open and then, just as it was starting to scab, something would cut it open,” one of the women stated.

The court documents state that a pre-sentence psychiatric report on Kenyon indicated that “he lacks the necessary insight to understand the issue of consent” and was viewed to be an “average or moderate risk” to re-offend.

But Kenyon’s lawyer stated that Kenyon has taken advantage of his time in custody, completing several programs and counselling related to alcohol use and other psychological issues.

He has also taken life skills courses, a Food Safe course and Canadian Red Cross training, and is “highly regarded” for his “laundry and tailor talents,” becoming lead hand, according to the documents.

The documents also state that Kenyon wrote a letter of apology in which he took full responsibility for the assaults and the harm to the victims.

Judge Gregory Brown said he believes that there is “some risk” that Kenyon could re-offend sexually, and he took into account that there was “some level of violence” in each of the assaults.

“It is clear to me that these women will have long-lasting, emotional scars as a result of these sexual assaults,” Brown said.

“I was impressed by both their courage to write (the victim impact) statements and their strength to carry on with their lives.”



Vikki Hopes

About the Author: Vikki Hopes

I have been a journalist for almost 40 years, and have been at the Abbotsford News since 1991.
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