Photo: Deborah Pfeiffer

Benny Wolfe appeared in Penticton Law Courts Monday

The sentencing for a Penticton man accused of obtaining the sexual services of a person under the age of 18 is expected to take place Jan. 31.

After hearing from Crown counsel Catherine Crockett and the accused, Benny Wolfe, on Monday, Judge Meg Shaw said she would make a decision at that later date.

Speaking in his own defence, Wolfe who entered a surprise guilty plea in June to having sex with the underage girl,  said he was satisfied with what the crown had to say about the facts of the case.

I want to tell the courts that I regret what I have done and that it was a big mistake on my part not to have her age confirmed by identification, he said.

He further told the court that this will never, ever happen again and he is not a sexual threat to children and at absolutely no risk to re-offend.

Wolfe expressed concerns that he may be around children who are under 18 when he goes to the grocery store or restaurant and said he wants to move out of Penticton because it is a small town and he could run into the girl at any time.

Crockett suggested a sentence of 6 months or more in jail for Wolfe and for counseling for about a year. Probation could possibly go longer she stated, because there are concerns about the protection of children.

She said Wolfe is not a worst case scenario, because he has been cooperative with authorities through much of the process and entered an early guilty plea, saving the girl having to go through a preliminary hearing and trial.

On the other hand he is not the best either, because he quite deliberately carried on an ongoing business relationship with the girl and brokered an arrangement with the stepfather, knowing full well he was prostituting his stepdaughter.