Producer of child porn apologizes to victims

Before he was sentenced to 15 years for making child pornography with vulnerable girls from his neighbourhood in Saskatoon’s core, Russell Dennis Wolfe acknowledged — for what appears to be the first time — the harm he caused his victims.

He spoke in court, apologizing to the girls “from the deepest place in my heart,” his lawyer Brian Pfefferle said. Wolfe told them he’s the one to blame for their abuse, and that they should not blame themselves. Two of Wolfe’s 14 victims said they felt guilty and partly responsible for engaging in sex acts with Wolfe when they were between 11 and 13 years old. Their victim-impact statements, along with two others, were heard in court during Wolfe’s long-term offender hearing last week. Wolfe, 59, pleaded guilty last year to 20 child sex assault, child prostitution and child pornography offences stemming from between 1997 and 2008.

He was designated a long-term offender on Thursday in Saskatoon Court of Queen’s Bench and received a 15-year prison term. With credit for time spent on remand, Wolfe has 10 years remaining on his sentence and will be under supervision for 10 years following his release from prison.

Justice Daniel Konkin accepted the joint-submission proposed by the Crown and defence, citing a forensic psychiatrist’s finding that he could not conclude that Wolfe is incapable of ultimate rehabilitation, Pfefferle said.

Dr. Shabehram Lohrasbe determined that, while Wolfe poses a significant risk to reoffend, his future risk of hands-on offending can likely be managed in the community. The two components are required for a long-term offender designation and are the reasons why the Crown and defence chose to pursue it over a dangerous offender designation, which carries the possibility of an indeterminate prison sentence.

Wolfe was arrested in 2014 after police found photos and videos of his child victims — between nine and 17 years old — during a separate investigation into child-pornography file sharing.