A known South Okanagan sex offender is set for statutory release from prison but will remain in a community-based residential facility for the time being, due to the risk he still presents to children.
Edward Casavant, 58, was known as Eddie Spaghetti to countless Summerland, B.C., children who became familiar with him at the pool he worked at for years. But his harmless moniker belied more than a decade of criminal behaviours that were uncovered in 2018 when police found 275 videos of child pornography on his personal computer.
Among the videos were spy camera images from the changerooms of the pool where Casavant worked and footage of sexual assaults on a young child with significant cognitive challenges.
Today, Casavant is nearing the end of a five-year sentence that started in January 2020, shortly after he pleaded guilty to accessing child pornography, voyeurism for the purpose of observing/recording activity, sexual exploitation of persons with disabilities and printing/publishing child pornography.
It’s legislated that at this point of a sentence, he must be granted release.
The Parole Board of Canada, however, has expressed misgivings. In a report released last week it said that, despite regular counseling, and having been released for day parole successfully, the risk Casavant poses to the community he chooses to live in remains, and, for the time being, they are imposing conditions aimed at mitigating them.
Casavant, the parole board said, has been attending counselling sessions with a social worker and was prescribed medication to manage his depression. He has also been participating in the Community Maintenance Program and records on all fronts indicate he has been attending sessions regularly, and shows a strong understanding of concepts and program skills learned.
In these sessions, Casavant discusses his sex offences openly and actively reports how he will avoid triggers and manage thoughts that could trigger sexual arousal with respect to his problematic sexual interests, according to the parole board.
He also is said to spend time with appropriate role models, leans on his case management team for guidance, and takes his special conditions seriously.
There are, however, concerns that he is not making sufficient efforts to establish himself in the community which has led to him to experiencing loneliness, isolation and feelings of depression, all risks for re-offending.
He was encouraged to try “volunteering or joining a community activity, however, (he is) not interested in doing so,” the parole board said.
“You are assessed as presenting an above-average risk for sexual reoffending, which is aggravated by your diagnosis of pedophilia. Your sexual offending and deviant sexual interests went undetected for a protracted period of time as you were very adept at hiding these sexual interests,” the Parole Board said in the report addressed to Casavant.
“You continue to experience emotions related to loneliness and isolation that are risk factors in your case, and have been hesitant to pursue relationships with adults. You have limited community supports consisting primarily of professionals assigned to your case.
“The Board finds that given the nature of your offending, assessed level of risk, and capacity for deception, you require a high level of supervision, monitoring, surveillance and oversight.”
In addition to not being allowed to live independently, Casavant, among other things, has to avoid children and places where they convene, continue to follow a treatment plan, not purchase any form of technology that would allow him to access the internet and not gain employment where children may be.