Vancouver drug dealer sentenced for sexual assaults of 'extremely vulnerable' Indigenous girls

A file photo shows a statue inside the B.C. Supreme Court in Vancouver, B.C.

Warning: This story includes details that may be disturbing to readers.

A Vancouver drug dealer who sexually assaulted two vulnerable Indigenous girls – one who was 12 years old and one who was 14 – after giving them "intoxicants" has been sentenced to five years in prison.

Da Wei Chen was convicted of two counts of sexual interference after a trial in April of this year and sentenced in June. The judge's sentencing decision was posted online last week.

"The sentence takes into account the seriousness of the offence and the harm suffered by the victims, the vulnerability of the victims, the fact Mr. Chen supplied the victims with intoxicants which increased their vulnerability and impacted their ability to resist, and the impact these offences have had on the girls," Justice Wendy A. Baker wrote.

THE CRIMES 

Chen was 26 years old when he met the victims in 2021. He developed a relationship with them where they would call him and "ask him to help them get out of trouble" and he would arrange for transportation and, in at least one instance, a hotel room, according to the decision. He would buy the girls alcohol and supply them with drugs, drinking and using with them even though he knew they were minors.

"Mr. Chen knew they were young girls engaging in dangerous behaviour, out late at night, abusing drugs and alcohol. They were clearly extremely vulnerable," Baker said.

"While they were in a state of severe intoxication and vulnerability, Mr. Chen took advantage of them sexually for his own gratification."

The 12-year-old victim, identified by the initials S.B., only met Chen a few times when she was with a friend. On one occasion, when that friend went to the store to buy more pop to mix with the alcohol Chen had provided, he took S.B. into a "grassy area behind some bushes" where he forced her to perform oral sex, the judge said.

S.B. had consumed at least six ounces of liquor and had smoked meth provided by Chen and blacked out during the attack, but she tried to get away when she regained consciousness.

"But Mr. Chen pushed harder and was more forceful with her," the judge said.

The second victim, a 14-year-old identified by the initials N.G., had known Chen for about two months when he assaulted her. The court heard that Chen bought N.G. a cell phone specifically so she could contact him.

On "many occasions," according to the decision, Chen would send a taxi to pick N.G. up. The driver of that taxi was a friend of Chen's with whom he had an "arrangement" that included picking up underage girls when they called and, often, buying them alcohol.

N.G. was living in foster care in March of 2021 and called Chen one night because she "did not want to go home," according to the decision.

The taxi was sent to pick her up, the driver bought and provided the alcohol and she was dropped off at a hotel on Hastings Street where Chen met her. After he arrived, N.G. drank the alcohol and took nine Xanax that Chen gave her, the court heard.

N.G fell asleep and awoke to Chen removing her pants.

"She told him to stop. Because she had been drinking alcohol and had taken Xanax, she felt very lightheaded and dizzy, felt she could barely breathe, and she was not able to move. She was not able to stop Mr. Chen," the decision says, adding that N.G. blacked out during the subsequent sexual assault and when she woke up her "vagina hurt."

THE SENTENCE

One of the factors the judge considered aggravating in the case was the "profound harm" done to the victims.

N.G. submitted an impact statement to the court where she said that the assault had "changed her forever" and that reliving it by testifying about it had been deeply traumatic, but something she felt she had to do to "keep other kids safe," the decision says. As a result of the assault, N.G. says she no longer trusts people and does not like to be touched by anyone.

S.B. did not submit an impact statement but her mother did.

"Her mother said that when S.B. thought about having to do the victim impact statement, she almost fainted. S.B. no longer feels safe and can only be alone if she is at home in her own room," the judge's decision says, summarizing the statement.

Also aggravating were the ages of the victims, the seriousness of the assaults, the vulnerability of the victims and the use of drugs and alcohol.

Baker did not identify any mitigating factors in the case and noted that Chen did not express remorse and did not agree with the court finding him guilty.

Chen was sentenced to three years for each offence, to be served concurrently with the overall sentence reduced to five years in accordance with the totality principle. This was what was recommended by Crown, while Chen's lawyer was asking for a sentence of two years in prison, followed by two years of probation.

Chen will have to provide a DNA sample and will be on the sex offender registry for 20 years.

The decision also noted that Chen has pleaded guilty to five drug trafficking charges but had not yet been sentenced for those crimes.