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Penticton  

Child pornography sentence

An American man facing charges including possession of child pornography was sentenced Monday in a Penticton courtroom to 90 days behind bars.

Sidney Van Valkenburgh, 49, was hauling shingles across the border into Osoyoos on Jan. 9, 2014 when he came under suspicion.

The border guard subsequently found a folder of pictures on his laptop of girls aged 11 to 14. The girls were all naked in various poses. The images did not involve sexual activity.

There were also four videos found of young ladies exposing themselves on a webcam.

Both crown counsel Catherine Crockett and defence lawyer John Stowell said Valkenburgh was sorry for his actions and open to change and counselling.

Stowell said his client, a commercial transport truck driver, was cooperative throughout and dumbfounded about the images. He furthermore had no prior record.

It's a situation Stowell stated where individuals don't realize harm until it is brought to their attention.

Valkenburgh admitted it was a horrible thing he had done, when he stood up to speak in court. He further stated he would like to find out why he got started on it and get counselling.

Judge Gregory Koturbash said he could not bind Valkenbourgh to a probation order because he did not have jurisdiction to do so in Canada. But after he serves his sentence, he will be deported to the U.S. and not allowed back.

Koturbash stated that the man's embarrassment must be an awful feeling, but it pales in respect to the damage to young children.

The reason these types of sentences have become harsher, he added, is because people like Valkenburgh are not getting the message, and there are more and more cases of people possessing such images.

 

 



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