He was 25 years old. Her, barely 10 years old. For months, a repeat cyberpredator abused a teenage girl in love with “emotional blackmail” and sexually explicit photos. He wanted to keep their “relationship” secret. Tommy-Lee Goneau is now at risk of being declared a long-term offender.
The 27-year-old Montrealer pleaded guilty at the end of June to several charges at the Montreal courthouse: computer luring, incitement to sexual contact with a minor under 16, production and access to child pornography.
“A relapse”. This is how Tommy-Lee Goneau explained his actions to investigators after his arrest in the summer of 2022. When he attacked this pre-teen, the cyberpredator was under three years’ probation which prohibited him from coming into contact with minors. In July 2019, he was sentenced to one year in prison for three counts of decoy at the Saint-Jérôme courthouse.
In April 2022, Tommy-Lee Goneau met the victim, then 10 years old, on the game Fortnite, extremely popular among young people. They start chatting on the Snapchat social network. Initially, the victim tells the 25-year-old man to be 16, soon to be 17. Later, she will tell him that she is 15 years old. It is therefore not established that the accused knew the true age of his victim.
Even though their exchanges were only virtual, the two considered each other to be in a “relationship”. “The two felt in love with each other,” summed up Crown prosecutor Me Hugo Rousse. But Tommy-Lee Goneau did not want their “relationship” to be known.
For months, the cyberpredator sends numerous photos of his penis to the victim. The young girl sends him dozens of explicit photos of her body, in addition to lending herself to several “live” sessions by camera in front of Tommy-Lee Goneau, who is masturbating.
They exchange videos, photos, audio and messages on many online platforms, including Snapchat, Discord and TikTok. Moreover, a quick search allowed us to discover that Tommy-Lee Goneau has many accounts on social networks, including at least nine only on Instagram.
Delinquent to control?
If the cyberpredator produced child pornography, it was during a “sexting” session with the victim, therefore during written conversations.
“By words, he will put children in position. He will ask [à la victime] what to do and tell her what he would like her to do. I think that for the sentence, it will be relevant that I give you examples. [Ça montre] all the intimacy that there was between the two, ”explained Me Rousse to Judge Pierre E. Labelle.
Tommy-Lee Goneau was also blackmailing the victim. According to the prosecutor, it was more “emotional blackmail” than the type of blackmail generally exercised by a cyberpredator, where he threatens to publish online photos of the victim if he does not receive others.
At the end of August, after months of discussions, the victim’s mother finally discovered the pot of roses when she got her hands on her daughter’s cell phone. After his arrest, Tommy-Lee Goneau told investigators he “needed help,” even though he had already been to therapy.
PHOTO CHARLES WILLIAM PELLETIER, THE PRESS
Me Hugo Rousse, Crown prosecutor, at the Montreal courthouse
The Crown prosecutor announced to the court “to think seriously” about the possibility of asking the judge to have Tommy-Lee Goneau assessed in order to determine whether he should be declared a long-term offender. If he received this label, the young man could be subjected to strict long-term surveillance upon his release from detention.
The case will return to court next September. Me Ann Wasaja represents the accused.