Attacker who kept woman in closet convicted

EDMONTON • An Edmonton man was found guilty Monday of kidnapping, repeatedly assaulting and keeping a woman locked in a closet.

Ryan Raymond Dechambre, 30, was convicted of a series of charges related to the abduction and weeklong captivity of a woman in July 2016.

“She feared for her life,” Court of Queen’s Bench Justice Paul Belzil said before convicting Dechambre of kidnapping, uttering a threat to cause bodily harm, sexual assault, unlawful confinement, assault with a weapon, possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose and extortion.

Two other charges were withdrawn by the Crown.

Dechambre slouched in the prisoner’s box as Belzil read his verdict, and didn’t appear to react to the verdict. Across the courtroom in the gallery, his victim sat listening with a support worker at her side.

The woman, whose identity is protected under a court-ordered publication ban, testified about her ordeal during a trial that began earlier this month.

After encountering Dechambre on 118 Avenue at about 2:30 a.m. on July 20, 2016, the woman agreed to trade sex for money and Dechambre drove her to Rundle Park.

After they had sex, Dechambre turned violent.

Court heard he pulled the woman’s coat over her head and dragged her back to his car. He drove her to a residence where he kept her for the next seven days.

For the first few days of her captivity, the woman was kept naked, locked in two different closets in the house. He sexually assaulted her 10 times during the week, the woman said.

A sentencing hearing is scheduled for Nov. 15.