An Edmonton dance instructor was found guilty of sexual exploitation Wednesday for a sexual encounter with a student who is more than 10 years his junior.
Oliver Nino Damaso was acquitted of sexual assault but found guilty of sexual exploitation and will be sentenced sometime early next year.
Immediately prior to his arrest in 2010, Damaso was working for the St. Albert studio Art of Dance, but his employment there was suspended as soon as the charges were announced.
Damaso was the young woman's dance teacher at another studio and began exchanging texts with her after she had taken several group classes with him.
Justice Darlene Acton found that Damaso's relationship with the girl was exploitative and was cultivated over a period of time so he could have sex with her.
"In this case, an older person insinuated themselves into a younger person's life slowly and insidiously to get her to a place where she was alone and available for sexual activity," she said.
In April 2009 the young woman became stranded at the University of Alberta after attending an event and she asked Damaso for a ride. She had been in his class for a long time at that point and the pair was very close. He picked her up and took her back to her home. Her parents were away at the time at a hockey tournament with the girl's brother.
Damaso asked to come in to see the inside of the home, which the girl allowed and they then became engaged in what they both testified was consensual sex. The girl was 16 at the time.
The girl asked Damaso to stop, which he did briefly and then the doorbell rang, prompting both to scramble for their clothes and end the encounter.
The crown had argued at trial that Damaso had not intended to stop when the girl asked, but Acton said there was no way to know what Damaso would have done had the doorbell not rung. She acquitted him on the sexual assault charge.
Position of control
Acton found Damaso guilty on the charge of sexual exploitation because she found he had brought himself into the girl's life so that he could take advantage of her.
The sexual exploitation section of the law applies when a victim is between 16 and 17 years of age and when the accused is in a position of authority or has an ability to control them.
Acton said that — given the dance class did not involve grades and was more informal — he was not exploiting the young woman simply by being her dance teacher.
Acton said Damaso became closer and closer, sending the girl text messages weekly at first, then daily and then several times a day and talking to her at dance classes until the point where she trusted him.
"He created the idea that he was, in her words, her best friend," she said.
She said once he ended up at the door of her house, he jumped on the opportunity.
"He knew no one was home and I find that he took advantage of that fact," she said. "Mr. Damaso was a hero figure to [her]. He was older. He was cool."
Crown prosecutor Maria Caffaro said she was satisfied with the verdict and said she was impressed with Acton's detailed decision.
"The court took time and went to great detail to talk about how this situation developed and how the acts that were described merited the consequences," Caffaro said.
Damaso's lawyer said his client is going to have to look closely at the decision to decide how to respond.
"We will be looking at the decision very carefully to see if there is any ground for appeal," he said. "He is a little bit disappointed and surprised, but as I said, he does have options and we will be looking at them together."
Damaso was not sentenced on Wednesday, as Acton decided to order a pre-sentence report. Sexual exploitation carries a mandatory minimum of 45 days. The sentencing will likely take place in January.
