Photo: Castanet

WARNING: This story contains details some readers might find troubling.

A Kamloops man who raped and brutally assaulted his estranged wife in an “excruciatingly painful” attack could spend as long as four years in federal prison.

The 35-year-old man cannot be named under a court-ordered publication ban put in place to protect the identity of the victim. He was convicted in January following a trial and was in Kamloops provincial court on Thursday for sentencing.

Court heard he raped and brutalized his ex during a visit on Nov. 18, 2019. They were separated at the time.

“The sexual assault included penile, digital and lingual vaginal penetration, as well as the insertion of the offender’s fist into the complainant’s vagina,” Crown prosecutor Katie Bouchard said in court.

“The complainant described the fisting as ‘excruciatingly painful’ and testified she experienced intense pain afterward for a couple of days and lesser pain for about a week.”

Bouchard read a victim-impact statement in court in which the woman said the incident disrupted her life and left her with post-traumatic stress disorder, among other maladies.

The man did not deny the sex acts but said he believed they were consensual. Kamloops provincial court Judge Marianne Armstrong did not buy his claim.

“He honestly believed he had consent — a mistake that led to his conviction,” defence lawyer Dustin Gagnon said.

“This is truly an unfortunate case.”

Gagnon asked Armstrong to impose a two-year house arrest sentence. He said his client is a single father — the primary parent to the two kids he has with the victim — and has no criminal record.

A psychiatric assessment also labelled the man a low risk to reoffend.

Gagnon said the kids’ lives would be upended if their dad was sent to prison.

“It would have a significant impact on them if a jail sentence was imposed,” he said.

The man was remorseful in court, but he stuck to his guns about his belief he had consent.

“I hope that someday she can forgive me for the harm that I have caused her,” he said.

Lawyers are expected to meet on June 19 to set a date for a sentencing decision.

The man remains free on bail and plans to appeal his conviction.