Rape victim asks women to speak up, as attackers found guilty

Sexual-assault victims should report their abuse despite the difficulties in prosecuting offenders, a Calgary victim says.

The woman, who was 16 years old when she was raped by two men while extremely intoxicated at a house party, said Wednesday the past four years have been trying.

But being able to see her assailants sent to prison helped ease her pain.

Geoffrey Gonzales and Ahmed Mosa were each sentenced to 2 1/2 years Wednesday for sexually assaulting the woman, whose identity is protected by a publication ban. Mosa was handed an additional 2 1/2 years for sexually assaulting the woman’s friend at the same Oct. 19, 2012, house party.

Justice Robert Hall accepted submissions by Mosa’s lawyer that a total sentence in the 4 1/2- to fiveyear range was warranted for her client.

Crown prosecutor Pam McCluskey had sought a seven-year term for Mosa and a four- to five-year sentence for Gonzales.

Defence lawyer John Hooker had proposed a one- to two-year term for Gonzales.

The victim said that despite the sentence being lower than she had hoped, she doesn’t regret going through the prosecution.

“A lot of girls never go through with it,” she said. “It’s just the worst thing to go through,” she acknowledged. “There were times that I didn’t want to go through with it.

“The fact they were found guilty means the world to me.”

In his July decision convicting the two men, Hall said the woman was so drunk that both men were required to ensure they had her consent but didn’t take any steps to do so, instead taking advantage of her intoxication.

“I was heard and they did believe me,” she said.

She said hearing Hall hand them lesser sentences than sought by the Crown “was a little bit tough for me.

“I have to live with this for the rest of my life,” the now 20-yearold said.

But she said coming forward and sticking with the case for four years has made her a better person.

“I was able to come out of this alive and stronger than ever,” the woman said.

Other women should learn from her case that perseverance can eventually lead to a positive result, even though the process can be daunting.

“You can get a positive outcome with this, even if it feels impossible,” she said of her message to other victims.

She vowed to “push girls to speak more about it . . . to put these type of guys in jail.”