A Saint-Donat firefighter who visited a high school to talk about his profession took the opportunity to lure a young teenage girl. Even after his arrest, Maxime Cadorette had sexual relations with the victim in the parking lot of his high school in full view of the students.
The 33-year-old firefighter, who works as a fire prevention technician at the CISSS des Laurentides, was in court in mid-October at the Joliette courthouse for the imposition of his sentence.
Maxime Cadorette pleaded guilty last July to counts of sexual contact with a minor under the age of 16, obstruction of justice for attempting to influence the victim in her statement to the police and several counts of non-compliance conditions of a release order.
“One of the greatest pleasures in life is doing what others think we cannot do. »
It is this maxim, loaded with meaning in the context, that Maxime Cadorette puts forward on his Facebook account.
The firefighter from Saint-Donat, in Lanaudière, met the victim in 2019, when she was in 1D or 2e secondary.
He then visits the teenager’s class to present his profession. After his presentation, the man and the teenage girl exchange “friendly” text messages. At the end of the summer, however, Cadorette stopped writing to the victim when someone close to her reported the situation to the police. An investigator even calls the firefighter.
But two years later, Maxime Cadorette reconnected with the victim, aged 15. During a walk, they kiss and have first sexual contact. In the winter of 2022, they had sex in a hotel in Sainte-Adèle. They then develop what the teenager describes as a “normal couple” relationship.
It is illegal for a man in his 20s to engage in sexual activity with a 15-year-old girl.
It was in October 2022 that the victim denounced Maxime Cadorette when the teenager’s parents realized that she was still seeing the accused.
Visibly seeing the noose tightening on him, Cadorette asks the victim to tell the police that nothing happened between them before he was 16.
Arrested in December 2022, Maxime Cadorette is subject to several release conditions. However, he immediately makes fun of it. So, he creates a new Instagram account and communicates with the victim. He even joins her in a high school parking lot to have sex. Their antics are filmed by students who notify the police.
Suspended “immediately”
In an interview, the mayor of Saint-Donat, Joé Deslauriers, assures that the municipality has “in no way” mandated Maxime Cadorette to visit a school – which is not in Saint-Donat. . The part-time firefighter was suspended “immediately” as soon as he was indicted, assures the mayor.
“We do not condone any action of this nature. I find that deplorable. We will take measures following the judgment fairly quickly and promptly. It is clear that we are not going to tolerate this. I salute the victim for speaking out. I think it’s a courageous gesture. We invite victims to denounce,” said Joé Deslauriers.
The offender’s main employer, the Laurentides integrated health and social services center, was, however, stingy with comments, remaining vague on Cadorette’s status and employment relationship. “However, we can confirm to you that a situation such as you describe leads to withdrawal from work until the end of the investigation,” said spokesperson Hugo Morissette.
The case will return to court next December for sentencing.
Me Stéphanie Gilbert represents the public prosecutor, while Me David Robert Temim defends the accused.