Article contentAs their grandfather, the man often took care of all three children. His daughter told police he would play games such as hide and seek in their home and would take them out of the house to play or go on drives.Article contentThe man went to the police station that day and the next, advising that he wanted to confess and provide a statement, but police said they needed to put a few things in place first.Article contentThe 10-year-old gave a statement to police Aug. 31, 2023. Holding a stuffed animal for comfort, she told police the abuse began when she was six or seven.Article contentShe said one of her earliest memories of the abuse was a time when her grandfather told her and her oldest sister that he loved them and wanted to show them something. He told the girls to turn around. When she turned back around, she said he had exposed his erect penis.Article contentShe said he asked her if she knew what it was and she said no. He said it was his private parts and sometimes when a girl touches a boy’s private parts, it makes him feel better.Article contentArticle contentHe told her his hands, feet and head always hurt and asked her if she wanted to make him feel better. She said yes, so he got her to touch his genitals while he moved back and forth and moaned.Article contentThe man then asked the two girls if they wanted him to make them feel better, and they said yes. He proceeded to tickle them and rub their genitals.Article contentThe girl told police that her grandfather touched her on numerous occasions over the years and that the abuse grew to include oral sex, digital penetration and at least one attempt at intercourse.Article contentShe also said she had witnessed her grandfather sexually abusing her sisters. She said he would take her and the middle girl on drives and show them pornographic videos in the car while he played with himself.Article contentThe girl said she was afraid to tell anyone about the abuse because her grandfather had told the girls that if they said anything, he would go to jail and they would all get in trouble. She also told her mother she was scared that child protection services would get involved and take her away.Article contentArticle contentAfter speaking with police, the girl told her mom that she felt she needed to protect her younger sisters from their grandfather and would offer herself up to take the brunt of the abuse, telling him that she liked what he was doing.Article contentInvestigators arranged for the man to attend Halifax Regional Police headquarters later on Aug. 31, 2023. When asked during his interview if he had anything to say to his granddaughters, he said, “I love them and I’m sorry.” He also stated that he was stupid and wanted to blow his head off.Article contentBecause of the amount of detail provided by the girl, police decided not to take statements from the two younger children.Article contentThe agreed facts say the abuse did not happen daily but did occur frequently.Article content“The Crown has correctly characterized the offending actions as occurring with enough frequency that it became normalized for these children (when) with their grandfather,” the judge said.
‘He stole the innocence of these children’: Dartmouth-area man gets 13 years for sexually abusing granddaughters
