Teen girl testifies at sex assault trial
A 16-year-old girl who became Facebook friends with sex offender Trevor Phillip Pritchard, sent him partially nude pictures of herself, but she never personally met him, she testified Friday during the accused’s trial in Lethbridge Court of Queen’s Bench.
The girl, who cannot be named under a court-ordered publication ban, testified the two began exchanging messages when she was only 14 and after he made a friend request in 2016 through Facebook Messenger. She accepted the request after a friend assured her she could trust “Phillip Fieldcamper,” which is one of several aliases Pritchard used on social media.
The girl, who is the subject of a luring charge against Pritchard, told court she and Fieldcamper continued to exchange messages, which became progressively suggestive as Fieldcamper asked the girl to send him pictures of herself and told her he wanted to have sex with her. She said he sent her a picture, as well, but it was “pixilated” and appeared to be a photo of a 16-year-old boy taken from Google Pictures.
Pritchard, 35, is also charged with sexual assault and luring in relation to another underage girl, who is scheduled to testify Monday. He also faces charges of possession of child pornography and luring in relation to other allegations.
The two girls were identified while police were investigating Pritchard for another sexual assault against a young girl, and for which he has already pleaded guilty. He is, however, expected to ask a judge to strike the guilty plea.
The accused pleaded guilty in April to sexual assault and child luring against the young teenager, who he met on Facebook. He admitted that on Jan. 17, 2017, the girl agreed to meet him, believing he would take her to a job interview. Pritchard took the girl to his home in Coaldale, however, and forced her to participate in various sexual acts. He drove her to her home afterward and threatened to kill her if she told anyone.
After he was arrested in January of last year, additional alleged victims came forward and he was charged. Those are the charges for which he is currently on trial.
Pritchard, who finished serving a 44-month sentence in November 2013 for the sexual assault of two 13-yearold girls, wants a judge to strike his earlier guilty plea to avoid being designated a dangerous offender. The Crown intends to apply to have Pritchard designated a dangerous offender, which can result in an indeterminate sentence of imprisonment if the accused is found guilty.
Follow @DelonHerald on Twitter