More victims alleged in Midland sex abuse case
By Tracy McLaughlin ,Special to QMI Agency First posted: Friday, January 24, 2014 09:30 PM EST | Updated: Friday, January 24, 2014 09:37 PM EST
MIDLAND - OPP investigators have alleged there are eight additional child victims in a sexual assault case that includes accusations of bestiality, conspiracy to kidnap a child and the making of child porn.
Police have also introduced new allegations that some children were drugged before they were sexually assaulted.
Shayne Lund, 22, of Midland has been in custody — along with two of his girlfriends — since last October. He is charged with 110 counts including child sexual assault, making child pornography, conspiring to kidnap and sexual assault a child.
Avery Taylor, 20, of Orillia, is now facing 20 charges while Kathryn Thompson, 19, of Orillia, faces 26 offences. The women had initially faced 16 charges each.
The new allegations against the three accused include administering a noxious substance to children as young as two years old, coercing children to have sex with animals, coercing them to commit voyeurism, and videotaping them in sexual acts.
The mother of one of the children at the centre of the case was outraged to learn of allegations that her preschooler had been drugged.
“I just feel like I’m going to lose my mind,” the mother said, weeping as she spoke to the Toronto Sun outside of court. “This sickens me.”
When the three accused were initially charged last September it was believed that only five children from ages two to five had allegedly been victimized. With the eight additions, there are now 13 complainants. There is a ban on publication of the identities of all victims.
The new allegations against the three include mischief by damaging the bed sheets of a 10-year old and the theft of underwear.
Another alleges Lund forced a 14-year-old girl to perform sexual acts and bestiality with a dog while being videotaped, and then threatened to show the videos to her father if she didn’t provide further sexual favours.
While Lund allegedly acted alone in most of the charges, Taylor or Thompson are accused in many cases of assisting him, or committing the acts on their own.
According to one allegation against the trio, a five-year-old child was blindfolded and tricked into a game of taste-testing, with bowls of chips and a person wearing a strawberry-flavoured condom.
In October, Taylor had a lengthy two-day hearing and was denied bail. Thompson waived her bail and agreed to remain in custody. Lund has not yet had a bail hearing and remains in custody.
Pretrial proceedings are scheduled for Feb. 7.
The Crown has announced that it will be seeking a dangerous offender designation for Lund if there is a conviction. Such a designation can carry an indefinite jail term.
“He went out with a lot of girls,” said the 19-year-old, who was 14 at the time police allege that Lund sexually assaulted her. “But when it comes to children and animals though, he never showed any signs of interest. In fact, he always said he didn’t like kids.”
While most of the new allegations against Lund are from the year 2013, at least two accusations of sexual assault date to 2009 and 2010.
The woman said she met Lund at a time in her life when her self-esteem was very low.
“He preyed on girls with low self-confidence and low self-esteem … that’s when he got to me,” she alleged.
She said at first, Lund was kind to her.
“It was at a time in my life when I needed attention. He made me feel special. He knew exactly what to do and say to make them feel special.”
Lund is now facing 110 charges including sexually assaulting children, administering noxious substance, bestiality, voyeurism, and creating child pornography.
Two of Lund’s girlfriends also face charges. Avery Taylor, 20, of Orillia, is accused of 20 offences and Kathryn Thompson, 19, of Orillia, is facing 26 counts.
The complainant said she knew all three when they were in their early teens and recalled Taylor seemed obsessed with Lund.
“Avery was a really nice person. She was smart — but she had very low self-esteem,” the woman added. “Shayne gave her attention and she thrived on it. She was blind to him.”
Now, years later, she wonders if she should have come forward to police before allegations first appeared. She went to investigators recently with allegations that date to 2009.
“It’s hard thinking that maybe if I had have said something before, some of this could have been avoided.”
Still, she insists she is not a victim, no matter what police call it, adding “I prefer to call myself a survivor.”
More victims alleged in Midland sex abuse case | Ontario | News | Toronto Sun
By Tracy McLaughlin ,Special to QMI Agency First posted: Friday, January 24, 2014 09:30 PM EST | Updated: Friday, January 24, 2014 09:37 PM EST
MIDLAND - OPP investigators have alleged there are eight additional child victims in a sexual assault case that includes accusations of bestiality, conspiracy to kidnap a child and the making of child porn.
Police have also introduced new allegations that some children were drugged before they were sexually assaulted.
Shayne Lund, 22, of Midland has been in custody — along with two of his girlfriends — since last October. He is charged with 110 counts including child sexual assault, making child pornography, conspiring to kidnap and sexual assault a child.
Avery Taylor, 20, of Orillia, is now facing 20 charges while Kathryn Thompson, 19, of Orillia, faces 26 offences. The women had initially faced 16 charges each.
The new allegations against the three accused include administering a noxious substance to children as young as two years old, coercing children to have sex with animals, coercing them to commit voyeurism, and videotaping them in sexual acts.
The mother of one of the children at the centre of the case was outraged to learn of allegations that her preschooler had been drugged.
“I just feel like I’m going to lose my mind,” the mother said, weeping as she spoke to the Toronto Sun outside of court. “This sickens me.”
When the three accused were initially charged last September it was believed that only five children from ages two to five had allegedly been victimized. With the eight additions, there are now 13 complainants. There is a ban on publication of the identities of all victims.
The new allegations against the three include mischief by damaging the bed sheets of a 10-year old and the theft of underwear.
Another alleges Lund forced a 14-year-old girl to perform sexual acts and bestiality with a dog while being videotaped, and then threatened to show the videos to her father if she didn’t provide further sexual favours.
While Lund allegedly acted alone in most of the charges, Taylor or Thompson are accused in many cases of assisting him, or committing the acts on their own.
According to one allegation against the trio, a five-year-old child was blindfolded and tricked into a game of taste-testing, with bowls of chips and a person wearing a strawberry-flavoured condom.
In October, Taylor had a lengthy two-day hearing and was denied bail. Thompson waived her bail and agreed to remain in custody. Lund has not yet had a bail hearing and remains in custody.
Pretrial proceedings are scheduled for Feb. 7.
The Crown has announced that it will be seeking a dangerous offender designation for Lund if there is a conviction. Such a designation can carry an indefinite jail term.
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One of Shayne Lund’s alleged victims says she was troubled to learn of the accusations involving small children.“He went out with a lot of girls,” said the 19-year-old, who was 14 at the time police allege that Lund sexually assaulted her. “But when it comes to children and animals though, he never showed any signs of interest. In fact, he always said he didn’t like kids.”
While most of the new allegations against Lund are from the year 2013, at least two accusations of sexual assault date to 2009 and 2010.
The woman said she met Lund at a time in her life when her self-esteem was very low.
“He preyed on girls with low self-confidence and low self-esteem … that’s when he got to me,” she alleged.
She said at first, Lund was kind to her.
“It was at a time in my life when I needed attention. He made me feel special. He knew exactly what to do and say to make them feel special.”
Lund is now facing 110 charges including sexually assaulting children, administering noxious substance, bestiality, voyeurism, and creating child pornography.
Two of Lund’s girlfriends also face charges. Avery Taylor, 20, of Orillia, is accused of 20 offences and Kathryn Thompson, 19, of Orillia, is facing 26 counts.
The complainant said she knew all three when they were in their early teens and recalled Taylor seemed obsessed with Lund.
“Avery was a really nice person. She was smart — but she had very low self-esteem,” the woman added. “Shayne gave her attention and she thrived on it. She was blind to him.”
Now, years later, she wonders if she should have come forward to police before allegations first appeared. She went to investigators recently with allegations that date to 2009.
“It’s hard thinking that maybe if I had have said something before, some of this could have been avoided.”
Still, she insists she is not a victim, no matter what police call it, adding “I prefer to call myself a survivor.”
More victims alleged in Midland sex abuse case | Ontario | News | Toronto Sun
