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Northwoods Inn owner John Pontes won’t serve any jail time for groping one of his tenants, but he will have to register as a sex offender.
The operator of the motel on Idylwyld Drive North was sentenced Tuesday to 18 months probation for sexually assaulting his then- 30-year-old tenant.
The woman, whose name is subject to a publication ban, told court she had trusted Pontes as her landlord.
“I thought he was a good man,” she testified during his trial.
But one day, he groped her under her clothing – leaving her with psychological trauma that she said led her to heavy drinking.
Pontes, now 75, was charged in November 2017 and convicted of the sexual assault charge a year later.
He was found not guilty of extortion, and of another charge of sexual assault.
Through his sentencing order, Pontes will have to register as a sex offender for the next 20 years.
The Crown prosecutor in the case had requested a 90-day jail sentence, citing the need for denunciation and deterrence of Pontes’ actions.
However, defence lawyer Patrick Fagan argued his client’s actions were on the “lowest end” of the sexual assault spectrum. He also noted Pontes’ advanced age, deteriorating health and “character” as a supportive father should be taken into consideration.
“He’s not in good condition,” Fagan told reporters, noting Pontes’ heart conditions and type two diabetes.
These charges aren’t the first time Pontes has been in trouble for sexual misconduct. In 2014, he was ordered to pay nearly $45,000 in damages for sexually harassing a female employee at the Northwoods Inn, after she filed a complaint with the Saskatchewan Human Rights Commission.
Pontes will be back in court in May when a trial will be held for separate charges of sexual assault, extortion and uttering death threats against another woman.
