A 26-year-old man was sentenced to 45 months in prison for extorting young girls on social media for explicit photos and videos, all using false identities.
“This sentence takes into account the seriousness of the actions taken, summed up Judge Pierre Labelle on Tuesday at the Montreal courthouse. To say that the exchanges with the offender have turned their lives upside down [des victimes] is an understatement.”
After reading the judgment which lasted less than an hour, Marc-Antoine Corbeil was handcuffed.
“See you later,” he said with a defeated look to his loved ones in the room, at the dawn of his 45-month sentence.
Six victims
Between 2017 and 2019, he came into contact with young girls on social networks to obtain compromising videos and photos.
Overall, five of the six victims were minors when the Beauharnois resident contacted them.
For example, the accused pretended to be a young girl, using the pseudonyms megane.dupuiso6 and megane.lalonde.
If Corbeil’s victims refused to cooperate again, he threatened to share the compromising files with his contacts.
500 pictures
Corbeil has also created many accounts to put pressure on teenage girls, including nissant_gtr, x_naru_x and lord_evil666.
During a search in January 2020, 501 photos and 15 videos of child pornography were seized by the police.
Most involved girls between the ages of 8 and 18 having sex with adult men or masturbating with objects.
In a file peeled by the authorities, there were dozens of files where victims were identified.
Ravages
These have testified in various statements to the Court of the devastation caused by the offender.
“Several themes intersect in the consequences experienced by the victims. The constant fear, the anxiety, the incomprehension are present for each of them”, mentioned the judge Labelle.
Beyond the psychological problems, the young girls also suffered socially. Some have had to change schools, lose friendships and become isolated.
“And to say that all of this took place while the victims were probably inside their respective homes, safe, they believed,” continued Judge Labelle.
Much less
The magistrate also mentioned various mitigating factors to determine Corbeil’s sentence. He notably mentioned an intellectual limitation in the accused as well as a difficult childhood.
By deciding for 45 months in prison, Judge Labelle camped far from the proposal of the Crown, which pleaded for 84 months.
“The judge weighed all the factors that were present and specific to the case, namely the consequences for the victims, the seriousness of the crimes that were committed, but also the profile of the individual,” indicated at the end of the trial. hearing Me Camille Boucher, prosecutor for the public ministry.