Prosecutors are seeking a nine-year prison sentence for a man who sexually assaulted a 12-year-old boy he had just met on a city bus.
Paramvir Singh Saini, 46, pleaded guilty Monday to one count of sexual interference. Additional charges of kidnapping, invitation to sexual touching, uttering threats and violating the liquor control act were stayed by the Crown.
Court heard Saini and the boy were riding the same bus on April 9, 2022, when the boy asked Saini for money and food.
“The accused brought the victim back to his apartment for that purpose and agreed to give the victim money,” Crown attorney Manoja Moorthy told provincial court Judge Stacy Cawley.
Bus security video showed Saini and the victim kissing before they exited the bus, Moorthy said.
Once at Saini’s apartment, the boy’s pants were partially removed and he was sexually assaulted. The boy, court heard, was a ward of Child and Family Services. He left the apartment a short time later and called police.
The boy suffered a bite mark to his shoulder that the accused admitted was inflicted for a sexual purpose. Defence lawyer Marc Zurbuchen said Saini was “quite intoxicated” and had no memory of biting the boy, but took responsibility for the injury.
Saini did not know the boy’s age and admitted he did not take “reasonable steps” to confirm it, Zurbuchen said.
Saini will return to court for sentencing at a later date. He has no prior criminal record in Manitoba.
Moorthy said the Crown will be seeking a nine-year prison sentence. Zurbuchen did not tell court what sentence he will be recommending.
The agreed facts as disclosed to court Monday differed sharply from the allegations reported at the time of Saini’s arrest. At that time, it was alleged a suspect had offered the boy candy before abducting him from a Main Street bus stop and forcefully walking him to his Osborne Village home. It was alleged the suspect plied the boy with alcohol and threatened him before sexually assaulting him.
dean.pritchard@freepress.mb.ca
Dean Pritchard
Courts reporter
Dean Pritchard is courts reporter for the Free Press. He has covered the justice system since 1999, working for the Brandon Sun and Winnipeg Sun before joining the Free Press in 2019. Read more about Dean.
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